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AVA suspends vegetables from Hyogo, Japan

Radioactive contaminants are found in cabbages from Hyogo, Japan. (Getty Images)
Radioactive contaminants are found in cabbages from Hyogo, Japan. (Getty Images)

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) has added another food item to the list of food imports with radioactive contaminants from Japan.

The latest suspensions are fruits and vegetables from Hyogo prefecture. Tests conducted on shipments imported last Saturday showed that radioactive contaminants were found in cabbage.

To date, 488 samples of fruits and vegetables, seafood, meat, milk and milk products from Japan have been tested for radioactive contamination.

The AVA had earlier suspended imports from another 10 prefectures including Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba.

In a press statement, AVA added that it has increased its surveillance of food imports from Japan since the start of the incident at Fukushima Nuclear Plant to ensure that they are safe for consumption.

Since 25 March 2011, all consignments of fruits and vegetables, seafood, meat, milk and milk products have been subjected to hold-and-test.

This means that the products will only be released for sale when test results show that there is no radioactive contamination. If radioactive contaminants are detected in any sample, the affected shipment will be disposed of.

For more information, the public can visit the Japan Earthquake microsite at www.gov.sg/japanquake for latest updates and information. They can also visit the AVA website at www.ava.gov.sg.

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