|
Japan to require country of origin to be specified for rice+
(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TOKYO, Nov. 21_(Kyodo) _ The government plans to require rice products, retailers and restaurants to specify country of origin for rice after a finding that some Japanese traders sold pesticide-tainted imported rice for edible purposes, agriculture ministry officials said Friday.
The plan meets consumers' desire to identify whether products are made from domestic or foreign rice in the wake of the recent finding, said the officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
It would be the first time for restaurants in Japan to be required to specify country of origin for meals.
The rice traders in question bought imported rice certified by the government as tainted with pesticide or any other harmful substance under arrangements to use the rice for non-edible purposes and resold the rice for edible purposes.
The government also plans to require all rice producers and traders to keep trading records so that regulators may track rice distribution channels, they said.
The government may submit relevant legislation to the Diet next year, they said.
Rice products subject to the country of origin labeling requirement are designed to include box lunches and other meals, crackers, dumplings and bread. But liquor will be exempted from the requirement.
Copyright ? 2008 Kyodo News International, Inc.
[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
|