Japan Food Sanitation Law Violations for June 2024 (Updated June 7)

On June 7, 2024, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) updated the list of food products that have recently violated the country's Food Sanitation Law during import.

The report cites several cases of non-compliant food items, including:

1. Dried dates (product no. 10715 DATES 2LB) from the United States, which were found to contain aflatoxin B1 at 471.0 μg/kg and aflatoxin B2 at 30.4 μg/kg, exceeding the legal limit.
2. Fresh mangoes from Thailand that tested positive for the pesticide propiconazole at 0.26 ppm.
3. Various frozen seafood products like shrimp balls, fish roe balls, squid balls, and fish sausages from China, which were detected to have positive coliform counts.
4. Frozen pre-fried shrimp skewers from Vietnam, which contained the antibiotic enrofloxacin at 0.01 ppm.
5. Frozen green asparagus from China, which was found to have the pesticide isoprothiolane at 0.60 ppm.

The implicated products were either ordered for inspection, placed under monitoring, or subjected to voluntary checks by the importers before being allowed into the Japanese market. This update serves as a reminder for exporters to ensure strict compliance with Japan's rigorous food safety standards.