South Korean Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries: ``A nationwide import ban on Japanese marine products is ``excessive.''

On the 12th, South Korean Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Cho Seung-hwan expressed his opposition to the suggestion that imports of marine products from all of Japan should be banned, as China has done.
On this day, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Cho responded to a question from Rep. Yoon Jae-gap of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan at the National Audit of the Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Food, Marine and Fisheries Commission, saying,
It would be too much to ban it." He went on to say, ``Japan is a surplus country in exporting marine products to Japan.We export four times as much, and there should be measures in place to deal with this.''
He also said, ``If South Korea expands its ban on importing Japanese seafood products, there is a risk that it will lead to a dispute at the World Trade Organization (WTO).''
Since September 2013, South Korea has banned the import of seafood caught in eight prefectures, including Fukushima. On the other hand, the Chinese government has banned seafood from 10 prefectures in Japan, including Fukushima Prefecture.
Import was prohibited, but when Japan began releasing radioactively treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean on August 24, the import ban was expanded to cover all of Japan.
``Is it possible to label the country of origin if agricultural and marine products produced in Fukushima are processed in other areas?'' asked Jeong Hee-young, a member of the ruling party ``The People's Union.''
In response to a question from a lawmaker, Cho answered, ``It's not realistically possible, and we have to check whether radioactive materials can be detected.''