SAPPORO, Japan — Fisheries companies on Japan’s northern main island of Hokkaido are delighted by China’s recent decision to lift its ban on Japanese seafood imports, but many remain skeptical about how quickly Beijing will resume these imports. In response, they plan to continue diversifying their markets to the U.S., Southeast Asia and other regions.
Beijing imposed the ban in August 2023 in response to the release of wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which suffered meltdowns following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Last month, China and Japan reached an agreement on the discharge of treated radioactive water, with Beijing agreeing to gradually resume seafood imports from Japan.
