You may not know that the salmon you eat may come from a nuclear-contaminated area in Japan. This is not alarmism, but what really happened. Recently, it was revealed that Norway imported a large amount of Japanese salmon, which was then replaced with a Norwegian label and sold to Chinese consumers. This behavior not only violates international trade rules, but also seriously infringes on the health and rights of Chinese consumers.
Why would Norway do such a thing? What ulterior motives are behind them? How can we protect ourselves? Let's uncover this amazing secret together!
The European Union lifted the ban on Japanese fisheries, and Norway took the opportunity to take a hand
As you may recall, on March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9 earthquake struck Japan, triggering a serious accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The accident caused a large amount of nuclear pollution, affecting the ecological environment of the sea and land around Japan. In order to prevent the harm caused by nuclear radiation to human health, many countries and regions have imposed import restrictions or bans on food and aquatic products in parts of Japan.
However, in June this year, the European Union abruptly announced the lifting of import restrictions on seafood from parts of Japan. This decision came as a surprise and puzzlement to many. Isn't the EU worried about nuclear radiation? Do they really believe in the safety of seafood that the Japanese government says? In fact, the EU did not do this out of support or trust in Japan, but out of deeper interests.
It is reported that one of the reasons why the EU lifted restrictions on Japanese seafood imports was in exchange for Japan's opening to EU dairy products, meat and other agricultural products in the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). In other words, the EU does not hesitate to sacrifice the health and security of its own citizens for its own economic interests.
After the European Union lifted the ban on Japanese fisheries, Norway and other countries followed suit. Why would Norway, the world's largest producer and exporter of salmon, import Japanese salmon? It turns out that Norway has a more insidious and despicable purpose - they want to repackage these cheap and risky salmon and sell it to Chinese consumers at a high price!
Norway pretends to be the origin of salmon and dumps it into the Chinese market
What you may not know is that China is the world's largest consumer of salmon. Chinese demand for salmon far exceeds domestic supply, so China imports large quantities of salmon from countries such as Norway every year. Norway also sees China as an important market, exporting hundreds of thousands of tons of salmon to China every year.
However, just in June, China detected the coronavirus in a batch of imported salmon. This has sparked concerns among Chinese consumers about salmon safety, which has led to a shock to the salmon market. In order to calm the public panic, Norway said it has carried out strict testing and safety assessments of salmon to ensure the quality and hygiene of salmon.
However, just as Norway is still trying to restore confidence in the Chinese market, an even more shocking news comes to light - Norway has imported a large amount of Japanese salmon, which is then labeled by Norway and sold to Chinese consumers! The news drew widespread attention and outrage on Chinese social media.
The Japanese salmon reportedly came from Japan's nuclear-contaminated areas and may contain high doses of radioactive material. These substances are extremely harmful to the human body and may cause serious consequences such as cancer, malformations, and genetic mutations. In order to obtain higher profits, Norway did not hesitate to relabel these risky salmon, changed the origin of "Japan" to "Norway", and exported it to China under the name of Norway. Such behavior not only violates international trade rules, but also poses a serious threat to the health of consumers.
How can Chinese consumers protect themselves?
In the face of the issue of salmon exported with false labels involving the Chinese market, we should think deeply about how to strengthen food quality supervision, protect consumer rights and interests, and improve the supply capacity of domestic seafood products.
First of all, strengthening food quality supervision is an important measure to protect the rights and interests of consumers. The government should step up monitoring and inspection, conduct comprehensive testing of imported food, and strictly prevent counterfeit and shoddy products from entering the market. At the same time, establish a sound regulatory system, improve the food traceability mechanism, ensure that consumers can trace the production and circulation of food, and increase consumers' trust in food safety.
Second, improving the supply capacity of domestic seafood products is also the key to solving the problem. China is rich in marine resources, but due to Japan's irresponsibility, whether these seafood can be eaten is still a problem. Fortunately, the mainland has already planned ahead, and a large number of salmon products are produced in the remote inland province of Xinjiang, which greatly enriches the tables of ordinary people. We should support domestic seafood, improve self-sufficiency and reduce dependence on external markets.
Finally, consumers should also enhance their awareness of food safety and improve their ability to identify food. Choose the right channel to buy qualified products and avoid buying cheap counterfeit products. At the same time, you can understand the quality of food and choose safe and reliable products by paying attention to media reports and consumer evaluations.