Boris plays along to preach virtues of Fukushima peach
BORIS JOHNSON has been filmed drinking a can of peach juice from Fukushima, the Japanese region which suffered a nuclear disaster following an earthquake and tsunami in 2011.
The drink was given to the Foreign Secretary by Tarō Kōno, his Japanese counterpart, who subsequently filmed Mr Johnson on his smartphone and then posted the video on Twitter.
More than 50 countries imposed import bans on produce from the region following the meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Approximately half of those bans remain in place with restrictions still in force in the US and China.
Japan will hope that Mr Johnson’s decision to consume the fruit juice on camera will help show the world that food and drink from Fukushima is safe.
Mr Johnson, for his part, appeared to enjoy the juice, declaring it “very good” before studying the label on the can intently and taking another drink. He then smiled to the camera and pronounced: “Yum. Mmmmm.”
Mr Johnson met Mr Kōno to discuss security alongside Gavin Williamson and Itsunori Onodera, the countries’ defence ministers.
Many Japanese politicians have publicly eaten or drank produce from in and around Fukushima in an attempt to prove it is safe for consumption.
But demonstrations of support have not always gone to plan. In 2011, Yasuhiro Sonoda, a ruling party MP, was seen shaking as he sipped from a glass of de-contaminated water collected from inside two reactor buildings.