Social Cleavages Caused By Radioactive Contamination of Food and the Environment: The Case of Fukushima

The nuclear disaster in Fukushima has inflicted devastating damage to agriculture and food of Japan in many respects. I will give an overview of the social cleavages caused by the disaster. First, the social estimation of organic agriculture was tremendously damaged because the regional circulation of organic matters, one of the most important characteristics of organic farming, was broadly contaminated by radioactive substances. Many consumers particularly concerned about food safety have stopped buying organic foods not only grown in Fukushima but in surrounding areas. Despite the fact that radioactive substances remaining in soil were not transferred to agricultural products, most of the consumers have not yet come back to the famers. The fall of the reputation of organic agriculture is the more serious because it is deeply connected with the growing distrust of Japanese food in general. Radioactive contamination of food has become a serious threat to the national food security. Second, a deep cleavage occurred between the farmers who are willing to live and farm in Fukushima at the risk of exposure of radiation and many anti nuclear activists who criticize these farmers insisting that they quickly leave the contaminated hometowns. The recognition gap concerning the risk of being exposed is so wide between them that it is difficult to establish the solidarity movement between farmers and anti nuclear movement. Third, there appeared a great gap between Fukushima and the rest of Japan, or between Tohoku District, northeast part of Japan consisting 6 prefectures including Fukushima, and the rest of Japan. The nuclear disaster has reproduced the unequal development patterns that were often observed during the modernization history of Japan: taking the goods to the center and bringing the bads to the periphery.