About seven factories of Mayumi Kurasawa’s seaweed company were affected by the March 11, 2011 tsunami. Two years have passed since the disaster, but sales continue to get affected, as consumers are afraid of the ill-effects of nuclear contamination.
During a recent visit to Tokyo to promote the company she works for, Kawashu said, “Our seaweed is checked every day, and I guarantee you that it’s safe”. Mayumi also said, “But we are selling two-thirds less than before Fukushima.” However, the same plight is also faced by other farmers in the region.
Kurasawa is struggling to sell their produce to a population which is still unconvinced by their reassurances of food safety. The problem has been caused due to the Fukushima Daiichi Plant in the region. The reactors of the plant went into meltdown during the nuclear calamity after the cooling system of the plant failed. Radioactive material was spewed into the atmosphere, which forced thousands of people to evacuate the region.
Kawashu’s company is about 300 Km away from the nuclear plant and despite this fact, the sales of the company are going down. Kurasawa said that many of their clients prefer produce from South Korea or from China as they think it is safer.
