Fukushima Nuclear Disaster – Implications for Japanese Agriculture and Food Chains

Abstract

There are few publications on various impacts of Fukushima nuclear disaster on agri-food sector in Japan in English. Moreover, due to the scale of contamination and affected agents, impact’s multiplicities and evolution, spillovers, and long time horizon, and the lack of “full” information and models of analysis, the overall impacts of Fukushima disaster on agrarian and food sector is far from being completely evaluated. This paper tries to fill the gap and assesses diverse impacts of Fukushima nuclear disaster on Japanese agriculture and food chains. First, a framework of analysis is presented. Second, immediate and short-term radiation effects, and effects on nearby population, safety regulation and inspection system, markets and consumer’s behavior, agrarian and food products, and health, as well as economic impacts on farming and agri-businesses, are all assessed. Third, overall shorter and longer-term impacts on agriculture, food industries, and consumers in Fukushima region, neighboring regions, and other parts of Japan are estimated.