JAPAN

Lifting of EU Fish Import Ban Sought: The European Union imposed the ban last week on imports of all Japanese marine products because of concerns over hygiene, the European Commission said. The Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry said consultations had already started in Brussels and that representatives from the Health Ministry and Fisheries Agency would be sent to Europe to quickly resolve the problem. The ban would affect imports of about 6,000 metric tons of fish a year. The ministry said it had not received an official statement from the EU explaining the specific reasons for the import ban, which was made after a visit to seafood-processing factories in northern and central Japan from March 27-31.