Radiation exposure through food items consumed by residents in central Fukushima Prefecture continues to remain far below the legal safety limit, according to a health ministry study.
Radiation exposure through food items consumed by residents in central Fukushima Prefecture continues to remain far below the legal safety limit, according to a health ministry study.
The dose of radioactive cesium from average meals in the region last year dropped to one-fifth of the level a year earlier, the health ministry said June 21.
The ministry’s finding showed that annual dose of radiation amounted to 0.0038 millisievert as of autumn 2012, down from 0.0193 millisievert a year earlier.
Japan’s annual radiation dose is set at up to 1 millisievert under law.
The ministry calculated the annual figures based on readings of radiation from rice, seafood and processed foods produced in local areas.
The central part of the prefecture includes Fukushima city, the prefectural capital, which is about 60 kilometers from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.