Should I be concerned about radioactivity in matcha?

Several readers have asked: "Should I be concerned about potential radioactivity in my matcha? Where is the farthest place from the nuclear meltdown in Japan where matcha is grown?" and so on.

Most matcha in Japan is grown far west of Fukushima, where the disaster occurred in 2011. But for those who are still worried about radiation in matcha, read on:

What we know about radioactivity and the irradiation of Japanese tea leaves:

On March 11, 2011, an energy accident occurred at the Fukushima I nuclear power plant, triggered by a tsunami. This led to three nuclear meltdowns and the release of radioactive material. Since then, the Japanese government has regularly tested tea varieties.

In the first year after the disaster, high radiation levels were measured in the prefectures near Fukushima. According to the Green Tea Guide, these included Fukushima, Chiba, Gunma, Ibaraki, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokyo, and Kanagawa. No radiation was detected in teas from the western Japanese regions of Uji, Kyoto, Osaka, and the island of Kyushu. These include the prefectures of Kagoshima, Miyazaki, Kumamoto, and Yame.

By August 31, 2014, no prefecture showed high radiation levels in tea. This says a lot, as Japan’s radiation limits are much stricter than the rest of the world (Japan: 100 Bq, EU: 500 Bq, USA: 1200 Bq — Bq = Becquerel, a unit of radiation).

Conclusion: As a general rule: the farther you are from the Fukushima region, the more certain you can be that the matcha is not radioactive. Fortunately, we grow our matcha in Kyoto, which is far west of Fukushima. Additionally, at MatchaLand, we test every harvest for radioactivity and we have never had a harvest fail our tests. 😊