Malaysia to screen Japanese food imports following Fukushima nuke wastewater release plan

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia will screen Japanese food imports following its decision to release nuclear-contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

Food products from Japan deemed to be high-risk will be subject to Level 4 (surveillance) inspection for radioactive materials, the ministry's director-general Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said in a statement.

"The ministry takes note of consumer anxiety on this matter," he said.

Muhammad Radzi said the ministry's Food Safety and Quality Division had previously monitored Japanese food imports from May 2011 to April 2012 following the earthquake that crippled the power plant.

He added that primary food imports from Japan to Malaysia are fish and fish products, followed by fruits, vegetables, and processed food and beverages.

Japan plans to dump some 1.3 million tons of wastewater from its Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant which suffered catastrophic damage during an earthquake in 2011. It has built an underwater tunnel stretching from its coast into the Pacific for the purpose.