Japanese farmers from Fukushima demand compensation from TEPCO

Japanese farmers from areas damaged by the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant disaster, where bans on meat supplies were recently imposed, have demanded compensation from the plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO). A 9.0-magnitude quake off Japan's northeast coast on March 11 triggered a tsunami and explosions at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), which caused the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl in 1986. Radioactive elements were later found in the water, air and food products in some parts of Japan. Authorities in Japan's Fukushima Prefecture asked farmers in mid-July in the region to stop selling meat over new radiation fears. Hundreds of farmers gathered in Tokyo for a protest outside the headquarters of TEPCO, demanding compensation to help them recover from the effects of the imposed ban. The move came after meat contaminated with high levels of radioactive cesium - up to seven times the permitted limits - was shipped to stores and markets and sold to unsuspecting customers, media reports said. The source of the contamination is thought to be straw that was stored outside in the aftermath of the nuclear power plant disaster. In a further development, radioactive cesium levels over 70 times the safety limits were discovered last week in straw at a farm some 80 kilometers from the devastated power station. The region had previously been considered safe by experts. Meat from over 40 cows fed with the straw were sold locally in April-July, the farmer who made the discovery told journalists. The Japanese authorities said earlier in July that it would take decades to decommission the crippled NPP, while environment experts reported higher concentration of radioactive elements in soil and produce from the region.