Food Fears (clip)

On March 11, 2011, Japan experienced the strongest earthquake in its history - and the fourth most powerful in the world - which then triggered a terrible tsunami that caused a catastrophic nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, the second most serious after Chernobyl.

The affected nuclear plant began to emit radiation in the following days, forcing the Japanese government to issue an evacuation order that would affect a large number of inhabitants in the region. In addition to the thousands of fatalities from the earthquake and tsunami, many families in Fukushima who lived out of farming and fishing were displaced to other parts of the country and never returned.

After a few years, some local producers decided to resume their activity. However, to sell their products now, many have to adopt new strategies to dispel the negative shadow left by the nuclear accident such as consumer distrust in the food safety of their products, despite the fact that experts and the Japanese government have stated in recent years that the radiation levels in Fukushima’s produce are very low or non-existent, making it safe for human consumption.

As much as I love to talk
about the food we eat,

there's a lot to say
about the food we don't eat.

The stuff we don't like,

can't afford,

or I've just never been offered

like, fried tarantula in Cambodia,

or jellied moose nose in Canada.

But then there are foods
we're afraid to eat.

We went to a region in Japan
were fears about food grown there

because of a very major
and very tragic event

have made consumers weary,

which makes life
really hard for growers.

FOOD FEARS

(Noboru) A lot of sparrows
would come eat the rice.

We fly kites instead of using scarecrows.

Rice from this area
has the highest rating,

and it tastes great.

This one is called Gohyaku Gawa.

The green ones are Koshihikari.

This farm has been in Noboru Saito's
family for eight generations.

A decade ago,
Saito quit his government job

to help his mom run the farm.

I'm 82 years old.

After my son came back,

my responsibilities lightened.

But a year after he returned,
disaster struck.

There was a massive earthquake.

When I looked around, the mountains--

there are lots in this area--

so these mountains looked like

they were being swayed or sliding.

That earthquake was a 9.1 magnitude.

The fourth most powerful ever recorded

that triggered a massive tsunami,

killed more than 15,000 people,

and damaged
more than a million buildings,

including the Fukushima
Daiichi Nuclear Plant,

which is still leaking radiation today.

There's still piles of radioactive topsoil

under black tarps near Saito's property,

which is 50 kilometers
from the power plant.

(Noboru) Some people decided
to stop farming

and fled to other regions
with their entire families.

Personally, I didn't run away.

I tried to make things work in this region
and fight the radiation.

It's catching the B-waves
from the radiation.

We have to make sure
the rice doesn't carry radiation.

So every spring,

we put potassium in our paddies.

It'll absorb potassium
instead of [radioactive] cesium.

This is known as inhibition of resorption.

The disaster has forced Saito
to find new ways

to make sure his produce is safe,

including raising money on the internet

to buy a 22,000 dollar radiation tester.

(Nobuoru) Here, we have some peppers.

You have to measure their weight first.

560, 550 grams.

And then you put it inside.

The machine will measure the radiation

and you can see whether or not
it's below the standard.

It won't confirm until after 15 minutes.

But already after 30 seconds,

it's stabilizing at zero.

The Japanese government says
the food from Fukushima is safe.

Two years after the meltdown,

it reported the 1.5% of food products
were over the radiation limit.

By 2017, that number dropped to 0.05%.

But people are still reluctant.

(Noboru) If I bring my produce directly,

I can answer questions.

I can sell while talking to people.

Then, because they understand.

They buy productos from Fukushima

with a peace of mind.

More customers are visiting every week.

Whether it's our peaches or vegetables,

they keep coming back
because they taste delicious.

Just because customers are coming back,

doesn't mean the disaster
is completely over.

By 2022, the nuclear plant
will run out of storage facilities

for radioactive waste water,

and experts have advised the government
to release the water into the ocean,

which could impact fishing

and raise new concerns
about the region's produce.

Koji Furuyama is also
a farmer in Fukushima

who specializes in luxury peaches.

His strategy for shaking
the region's stigma

is to be the best in the world.

Japanese agriculture is about making

the highest quality produce in the world
in limited space.

This has sugar content of over 20%,

so it's easily 50,000 yen
[$471] per peach.

Also, this is the world's
biggest kind of peach.

It will be this big

and it will keep growing
bigger and sweeter.

His best peaches have three times
as much sugar as a supermarket peach,

and they're priced
at 20,000 dollars a piece.

Last year, the highest sugar content

we achieved was 40.5%.

I tried it myself.

It was hard to describe with words.

When someone eats something
that delicious,

words won't come right away.

Even his more affordable fruits
are pretty expensive.

These usually sell

for 12,000 yen [$113] each
in city department stores.

That means altogether, these boxes
cost around 70,000 yen [$660] each.

As Japan prepares to showcase
its recovery by hosting the Olympics

10 years after the earthquake,

it's announced that the baseball and
softball events will happen in Fukushima.

Farmers here are excited that the games
may give them the opportunity

to reintroduce the world to their produce.

(Koji) Well, the people involved in media

will present to the world
the actual, recovered Fukushima.

So an event like the Olympics

will become a plus
for a prefecture like Fukushima.

Fukushima is stuck
with this image of danger.

That reputation is global.

Instead of keeping
that bad memory of Fukushima,

please visit Fukushima yourself

and see with your own eyes

that Fukushima is not
what you imagine it to be.