FUKUOKA -- A citizens group has shelved a plan to open a store offering produce from Fukushima Prefecture in a shopping complex in Fukuoka city after protests from local people.
FUKUOKA -- A citizens group has shelved a plan to open a store offering produce from Fukushima Prefecture in a shopping complex in Fukuoka city after protests from local people.
The shop, which was due to open on Sept. 17 at Marinoa City Fukuoka, was intended to support farmers following the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
However, news of the plan sparked alarm in the local community. The complex in Fukuoka's Nishi Ward, which allows direct sales of farm products to consumers, and a home delivery service involved in the project received 15 e-mails objecting to the plan.
One of the messages said: "Trucks from Fukushima will scatter radioactive substances." Another said: "Don't bring things from Fukushima into Kyushu."
The operator of the store told a news conference on Sept. 8 at the Fukuoka city hall: "I realized what 'harmful rumors' really meant."
Toshio Yoshida, head of the project, said: "We were going to sell processed goods, like 'umeboshi' pickles and 'ramen' noodles, made from products harvested before the March 11 disaster, and we planned to inspect them for radiation doses before putting them on sale."
An official at the Fukushima prefectural federation of agricultural cooperatives said: "We regret that the products cannot even be displayed on the shelves, allowing the consumers to make their own judgments."