Head of Osaka rice miller admits involvement in sale of tainted rice

Monday 08th September, 02:09 AM JST

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ColAmerica at 11:13 AM JST - 7th September

But you are all missing the point. The crafty foreigners sold him rice unfit for human consumption. He would have lost money and wouldn`t have been able to buy his son a PS3. The shame he would have brought on his family name would have been too much to bear.

If those damn foreigners had never sold him bad rice, this would never have happened. Yes, it is easy to see where the real blame lies.
lipscombe at 11:31 AM JST - 7th September

I sincerely apologize for causing great trouble and concerns among people

aaaah, see he has a heart of gold really, not just a greedy criminal. I think a suspended sentence of 6 months will put him back on the right track and send a clear message to criminals everywhere, banzai!
serindipity at 12:49 PM JST - 7th September

‘‘I sincerely apologize for causing great trouble and concerns among people,’’

Shouldn't he have said, " I sincerely apologize for poisoning a large percentage of the population" ????

This guy is a criminal of the most disgusting degree! He should be imprisoned for the rest of his life! He knowingly sold rice tainted with pesticide to people for consumption??? C'mon, this guy is a psycho!
some14some at 02:32 PM JST - 7th September

If those damn foreigners had never sold him bad rice, this would never have happened. Yes, it is easy to see where the real blame lies

It was Jpn Govt that sold him rice at Y10 per Kg. He sold same rice for Y50^70 per Kg to other wholesalers... Now it is upto you whom to blame?

.
smithinjapan at 02:40 PM JST - 7th September

Hmmm... I was talking about this with students yesterday and they insisted the rice was originally from China. 'THAT's why it's toxic!' they said. I'm not joking, either. A sick society in denial. I want to see Aso eat a bowl of this rice and declare how superior Japan's products and safety are to China's!
Kapuna at 02:49 PM JST - 7th September

Has anyone died or been sickened from the rice?
Betting at 05:26 PM JST - 7th September

So so so typically Japan. I can't believe that after all the, "We need to make more of our own food because we are the only ones we can trust", this kind of event pops up. But considering all of the other food scandals in Japan over recent years actually it is easy to believe another scandal can so easily slip in under the radar ... well nearly anyway. Glad these people were caught.
serindipity at 05:26 PM JST - 7th September

Has anyone died or been sickened from the rice?

Why should that make any difference? He knew it was tainted with pesticide, yet sold it for consumption.

SmithinJapan - I had a similar response in class yesterday too. They seriously believe it's not the fault of the Japanese business, but insist it's China's fault for selling the poisoned rice in the first place.
tclh at 05:28 PM JST - 7th September

I do not know about other people but it seems to me the whole food thing in general is in crisis! too much sugar is not good for you,,too much salt will cause you harm,same for fat ..and then soy sauce, soy products, msg, cooking with microwave oven, mad cow, GM food, growth hormones in chicken and farm fish, smoked products,processed foods, insecticides, pesticides...etc etc they are all no good!!! these troubled rice is jut a drop in the ocean of troubles we are facing. fed up ,too much.
borscht at 05:47 PM JST - 7th September

Has anyone died or been sickened from the rice?

No harm no foul, right? So, let this guy who sold poison to the public go.
Orangeporange at 08:40 PM JST - 7th September

>

*the farm ministry revealed that the company resold imported rice containing higher-than-allowed levels of pesticide residue and other toxic substances *

So is this the reason why Japan cannot import rice from other countries?
Hoolie at 12:25 PM JST - 8th September

Some additional facts for thsoe of you with students:

The contaminated rice was from multiple sources - he sold 295 tons of rice from China was contaminated with high levels of pesticides, and 3 tons of rice from Vietnam that was contaminated with a carcinogenic mold.

He bought the rice from the Japanese government, ostensibly to be used in the manufacture of industrial glues and rice paper, and then turned around and sold it for consumption.

So:

1) The Chinese and Vietnamese rice had been marked - in the country of origin - as unfit for consumption.

2) The Japanese government imported it under their WTO agreements to import established levels of foreign rice - the agreements don't specify the rice has to be edible.

3) Fuyuki purchased 800 tons of this rice from the government, knowing exactly what he was buying and what it was meant to be used for - glue and paper manufacture.

4) Fuyuki then turned around and knowingly sold nearly half of it for human consumption.

So, the only person involved in any wrongdoing here is Fuyuki (and any of his underlings that were in on the plan).
KissMint at 01:51 PM JST - 8th September

This Fuyuki guy is sick. Thanks for the info, Hoolie.

Ok, why am I bothering with these (?rhetorical) questions? But anyway...

How can Japanese people (such as the students you guys have described) be so blind and so stupid? Do they really only hear what they want to hear?

I was shocked when I read about those students' reactions. But why? I've heard similar things before. Makes me so frustrated.
ca1ic0cat at 02:44 AM JST - 9th September

yes, people always hear what they want to hear. And blame whom they choose to blame.

The really sad part of all this is that the effects probably won't show up for years and even then will be close to untraceable. But with Snow Brand and all the other Japanese grown food scandals I'm starting to wonder what I can buy that is really safe.

Sad, really sad.
HanaKimi at 10:37 PM JST - 13th September

Japanese firms are at fault here, according to many Japanese media, the rice was meant to be sold for Industrial use only like making glue, but instead they only sold a fraction for industrial use and sell the rest for human consumption.