Japanese fish farmers prepare to import the grouper grown in Pingtung County and Kaohsiung City in southern Taiwan, after China suddenly banned imports.
‘DEMOCRATIC FISH’: Soichiro Hayashi said he wants to return Taiwan’s kindness after it helped with relief efforts after the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunamiBy Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff writer, with CNA
Japanese fish farmers are ready to help Taiwan after China banned Taiwanese grouper imports, the <i>Sankei Shimbun</i> reported yesterday.
The Chinese General Administration of Customs suspended imports of the fish on Monday last week, citing prohibited chemicals and excessive levels of oxytetracycline allegedly found in grouper imports since December last year.
Soichiro Hayashi, president of the Hayashi Trout Farm in Japan’s Fukushima Prefecture, is leading the push for Taiwanese grouper imports, the newspaper said.
His call has caught the attention of several large sushi chains, the report said.
Hayashi, who is the Fukushima branch head of the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association in Japan,