By Yuri Kitagawa A large number of people in Japan suffer from fragrance pollution. The main culprits include laundry products, especially scented fabric softeners, but also fabric refreshers, air fresheners, and antiperspirants. The number of those affected is thought to be a few million and possibly as many as 10 million. Symptoms are headaches, nausea, diarrhea, asthma, dizziness, eye-ache and worse. Some people reach points where they are unable to go to school or work and in extreme cases, they are forced to escape to uninhabited areas and live deep in the mountains. In 2017, Consumers Union of Japan (CUJ) and its Soap/Detergent Group set up a Fragrance Pollution Helpline,…
Violating Consumers’ Right to Know and Choose
By Michiyo Koketsu, Co-Chairperson, Consumers Union of Japan In Japan, the food labeling system has been undergoing continuous deterioration over the past several years. How is it that the government has gone from leaving consumers scratching their heads over unclear labels, to violating our right to know and choose? It all started in 2015, when the food labeling system, which previously fell under a number of jurisdictions, was consolidated into the Food Labeling Law and placed under the Consumer Affairs Agency. They promptly established study groups to discuss the labeling of the origin of ingredients in processed foods, the labeling of food additives, and the labeling of genetically modified foods,…
Stop the Cultivation of GM Rice
Strong International Solidarity Can Stop the Cultivation of GM Rice and New GMO Rice We send a message of solidarity from Japan to all those who are fighting to stop the cultivation of Genetically Modified Yellow Rice (Golden Rice) in the Philippines. The increased domination of seeds by multinational corporations is being extended to the control of food and agriculture on a global scale. International organizations such as IRRI and national governments are supporting this escalating trend. In addition, there is a growing movement toward the cultivation of GMOs and New GMOs in staple foods, taking advantage of the Covid virus pandemic disaster. We understand that in the Philippines, the…
CUJ: Calling for the Withdrawal of Russian Troops from the Ukraine
Update: CUJ participated in the demonstration in Yoyogi and Shibuya in Tokyo on 21 March, with a focus on the issue of Russia’s attack on nuclear plants in Ukraine To Mr. Mikhail Galuzin, Ambassador of Russia to Japan From Consumers Union of Japan Ohno Kazuoki Koketsu Michiyo 28 February 2022 Calling for the Withdrawal of Russian Troops from the Ukraine Five days have passed since your country advanced its troops into the Ukraine. The lives and livelihoods of the Ukrainian people have been violated and many people have been displaced. This is a clear act of aggression and a violation of the UN Charter and international law.…
Japan Resources – 184
Please click here for our latest English newsletter: JR 184 Contents: From the Editors: Legal Issues Group Lawsuit Filed Against TEPCO by Young People with Thyroid Cancer Public Hearing on Genome-Edited Foods in Japan Status of Genome-Edited Fish and Consumers Union of Japan (CUJ) Activities Opinion on the Japanese Government’s Draft Guidelines on Non-use Labeling of Food Additives From the Editors: Legal Issues Welcome to issue No. 184 of Consumers Union of Japan’s English newsletter. This time we focus on recent legal developments including the first group lawsuit by people diagnosed with thyroid cancer after the tragic nuclear accident in Fukushima. Already, eleven years have passed and the suffering is…