Shizuoka governor snubs central gov't request to check steam

[entropyembrace]

That´s just simple dilution...and relying on that is stupid imo

first because the limits of radioisotope concentration are obviously for the tea leaves

and second because how are you going to test brewed tea? is a Japanese government official going to enter my house every time I brew Japanese tea here in Canada and check it for radiation?

[a.serrao]

That´s just simple dilution...and relying on that is stupid imo

first because the limits of radioisotope concentration are obviously for the tea leaves

and second because how are you going to test brewed tea? is a Japanese government official going to enter my house every time I brew Japanese tea here in Canada and check it for radiation?

Obviously not. That's why I either will:
1) buy japanese greens from the western most part of the island or
2) switch to chinese or indian greens

[AdamMY]

That´s just simple dilution...and relying on that is stupid imo

first because the limits of radioisotope concentration are obviously for the tea leaves

and second because how are you going to test brewed tea?

Reading the second article they take dilution into account. Apparently tea leaves have the exact same standard as vegetables 500 bq. But tea drinks (i.e. brewed tea) has a standard of 200 bq. So they do take dilution into account.

[a.serrao]

That´s just simple dilution...and relying on that is stupid imo

first because the limits of radioisotope concentration are obviously for the tea leaves

and second because how are you going to test brewed tea?

Reading the second article they take dilution into account. Apparently tea leaves have the exact same standard as vegetables 500 bq. But tea drinks (i.e. brewed tea) has a standard of 200 bq. So they do take dilution into account.

However I think that to refuse the tests put farmers in a bad light to the consumers.

[AdamMY]

However I think that to refuse the tests put farmers in a bad light to the consumers.

Well let me put it this way, I was exposed a bit to how a municipal water system works through working for one for several summers and winters. Now to ensure we met safety standards we would have to take water samples, some of our raw water which is water before it goes through processing and treatment. And also our finished product from several locations throughout the system. Which is equivalent in this instance to testing raw leaves, and the product sent out to the customers.

The equivalent to forcing producers to get Aracha tested, would be to choose a process the water undergoes, say softening, or addition of Chlorine, and forcing us to take samples of the water right after undergoing one process. Now while this does not sound like a bad idea, it really boils down to extra costs, when if anything was wrong at the intermediate step, it would be evident at the final step.

In short this is a production process, and while things change during the process, if you test raw product and finished product, why does it matter if you do not check Aracha that is not intended for sale?

[fire_snake]

This isn't helping. At all.

Christian

[Kevangogh]

I've got the actual test results here of all of the towns and areas in Shizuoka where tests were taken on May 12th & 13th. The results show for Cesium, and show both fresh leaf and also the infusion level.

For raw leaves, the levels range from a low of 39.83 to a high of 138.7. For infusion, the levels are 3.99 to 10.91. If the JA/EU standard is 500, the US standard is 1200, and the international standard is 1000, this doesn't seem to be too high.

[Chip]

We are basing our comments upon one sentence by the governor. It is typical reporting to print only what is sensational ... same thing we have been dealing with since day one.

Show me the facts, the test results. This is where the rubber hits the road (thanks Kevin).

I am not even sure what the actual source of this article is since the link and "credit" was omitted by the OP.

I am certainly not going to make any judgements yet based upon this little information. But I will most certainly be watching ... as I am sure we all have. I am confident in the end, there will be a set standard that all prefectures potentially affected will comply 100%.

And I am certain there will be more to this saga in the days, weeks to come.

And ultimately my confidence is still so much higher in Japanese tea products than Chinese tea products. China has for years been dumping suspect tea on Western brokers/wholesalers.

[tortoise]

What does any of this matter? Isn't the rapture supposed to go down this Saturday anyway?

I mean, really. There are more frightening matters.

[Kevangogh]

Well, the situation is changing by the day, I did not see this coming. Tochigi Prefecture looks to be in trouble now, they are implementing a ban there. This is not too surprising considering it is north of Tokyo. However, there is debate going on now as to what stage of the tea process the measurements are to be taken. It's almost certain that the Japanese government will insist, over the objections of tea farmers, that it occur after the leaves have been processed. As has been mentioned, this is about five times the concentration of fresh leaves. Yeah, you turn around and infuse that and it probably drops, but many people will not care. And I don't see how organic producers will be any less affected. All of that being the case, it's starting to look like Shizuoka Prefecture is not going to dodge the bullet after all. Not all areas of Shizuoka, but some of the main, bigger growing areas had levels of around 100 or more in fresh leaves. The highest I have seen was 138 in fresh leaves.

The area where our Fukamushi-cha comes from is Kakegawa. The level (fresh leaves) there was the lowest in Shizuoka - 39.83. Multiply that by five and you are at around 200 - still quite below the 500 mark. Other areas of Shizuoka, however are above 100 before processing. I can tell you they are the biggest areas. So even though most of my companies Shizuoka tea is not really affected by the "numbers", it's going to be affected nevertheless. Mainly, by 風評被害, which means "wind blown reputation damage", or "guilt by association". Most consumers are not going to care if their tea came from Kakegawa, Shizuoka or Shimizu, Shizuoka....it's just "Shizuoka."

The move to Uji for us turned out to be a real good move! Still, I think all green tea vendors will be affected by this. It's probably going to drive prices UP for Uji and Kagoshima green teas. The bottled green tea beverage companies will be clamoring for tea. I think this situation is going to make the little frost problem in 2010 look pretty minor, lol.

[chingwa]

[bambooforest]

and second because how are you going to test brewed tea? is a Japanese government official going to enter my house every time I brew Japanese tea here in Canada and check it for radiation?

Actually, this can be arranged.

[Cole]

Hello, fellow teathusiasts! I intended to make my first post a little more personal, but I can't help but pop in and ask what you guys with open bags of Shizuoka Shincha in your cupboard are thinking of doing right about now.

I ask because I just made my second "real" order from Dens, which included an order of Shincha Houryoku that I tore into earlier today. The tea is from Makinohara (southwestern Shizuoka), so I'm pretty sure it would be on the lower end of the radiation spectrum; but it's still deep-steamed and 88th-night first flush. It's the most delicious tea I've ever had the privilege of tasting and I really don't want to toss it/drink less steeps, but I also don't want to do anything careless, you know?

I know Den got some sort of certification for the tea when it was shipped here, but I'm not sure if the leaves themselves were tested. Should I hold off on it for now? And (bonus points!) would there be any risk of radiation getting absorbed into my (steel) tea tin or (glazed) tea ware? I'm not familiar with the science of radioactive decay, but I'm betting everyone in California is probably getting similar doses when it rains.

Thanks to anyone who reads through all this!

[bambooforest]

but I can't help but pop in and ask what you guys with open bags of Shizuoka Shincha in your cupboard are thinking of doing right about now.

I'm going to drink my tea.

I'm not saying what I'm doing is wise, but I'm not convinced there is any serious health risk. Though, I'm also not qualified to make that assessment, but it's my overall opinion now.

Here's another thing to take into consideration: Japanese tea is usually blended unlike Chinese green tea.

So, when a tea is "Uji", the question then becomes: "How much of the leaf is actually Uji and where does the rest of the leaf originate?"

Yeah, someone had to mention that and it looks like I just did.

[a.serrao]

I am not even sure what the actual source of this article is since the link and "credit" was omitted by the OP.

It's easy: cut and paste a portion of my post and you'll find the source.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp