TOKYO, Feb. 29 (Kyodo) — The Japan Dairy Industry Association said Wednesday its 116 member companies have detected no radioactive cesium in their 131 milk products in their tests following the March 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant accident.
"The safety has been confirmed," it said. "We would like consumers to feel safe to drink milk."
The companies, including such large ones as Meiji Co. and Morinaga Milk Industry Co., tested their milk products at their 124 factories in January and February before the government lowers the allowable cesium level for milk to 50 becquerels per kilogram in April.
No product showed levels above the minimum measurable level of 10 becquerels per kilogram.
The association voluntarily took the lead in conducting the tests in response to consumers' requests for detailed tests, although local governments have regularly tested raw milk.
TEAM Nihonmatsu, a nonprofit organization that independently conducts safety tests on food products, said it detected a maximum cesium level of 14 becquerels per kilogram in a milk product. It plans to maintain surveillance on possible radioactive contamination of food products.