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Social imaginary and dilemmas of policy practice: The food safety arena in Japan

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  • Yamaguchi, Tomiko

Abstract

Through the string of food safety scares that has rocked Japanese society since the early 2000s, conflicts between the traditional notion of socially acceptable risk and the idea of a science-based risk analysis approach have surfaced in the food safety arena. Elites, including government officials and those members of scientific communities who support the science-based risk analysis approach, have become responsible for communicating seemingly contradictory ideas such as “food in Japan is safe” and “there is no such thing as zero risk with food.” This communication logjam has resulted in confusion and created public distrust of both government and scientific experts. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to examine the struggles and challenges faced by government officials in explaining and practicing policies that pertain to highly controversial food safety issues. The primary data used for illuminating the discourses is the official minutes of governmental committees including the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Committee and the Consumer Commission.

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  • Yamaguchi, Tomiko, 2014. "Social imaginary and dilemmas of policy practice: The food safety arena in Japan," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 167-173.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:45:y:2014:i:c:p:167-173
    DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2013.06.014
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    Cited by:

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    2. Patrick Baur & Christy Getz & Jennifer Sowerwine, 2017. "Contradictions, consequences and the human toll of food safety culture," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(3), pages 713-728, September.
    3. Wilson, Norbert L.W. & Worosz, Michelle R., 2014. "Zero tolerance rules in food safety and quality," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 112-115.
    4. Shaosheng Jin & Baojie Ma & Yuqing Zheng & Xin Jin & Wenchao Wu, 2024. "Short‐term impact of food safety standards on agri‐product exports: Evidence from Japan's positive list system on Chinese vegetable exports," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(1), pages 362-381, February.

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