Click here for updates about the Joint Statement for Peace in Asia and how to sign
Joint Statement for Peace in Asia
Japan Resources #199
Contents:
From the Editors: Reaching Out
Statement of Protest Against the U.S. Declaration to Resume Nuclear Testing
Joint Statement Sent to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, and 10 ASEAN Countries
50th Anniversary of Peace in Vietnam
Booklet: Sayonara, Food Additives
Calling for Measures to Address Fragrance Pollution Affecting Children: New Survey Reveals Extent of Health Issues
Tabekime Campaign Update
From the Editors:
This issue of Japan Resources is published as usual on our English website as a pdf file. We also send it out on a mailing list to those who have shared their email address with us.
Did you know that Consumers Union of Japan also has an “X” account that you can subscribe to?
Since starting the English newsletter in the 1980s we have been making efforts to reach out to activists and colleagues around the world.
Back before the Internet, Japan Resources was a paper newsletter, mostly with photocopied articles and items of interest, as consumers share many of the same concerns around the world.
We hope you will also take advantage of our new online feature to contribute to Consumers Union of Japan, which makes it easy to make a financial donation online, and support our work. – Editors
Statement of Protest Against the U.S. Declaration to Resume Nuclear Testing
Statement of Protest Against the U.S. Declaration to Resume Nuclear Testing
14 November 2025
To: The Embassy of the United States of America
From: Consumers Union of Japan
We are a Japanese citizens’ non governmental organization (NGO). As citizens of a nation that has suffered atomic bombings, we strongly protest President Trump’s declaration to resume nuclear testing.
Nuclear weapons are inhumane weapons that not only cause massive destruction but also inflict prolonged suffering on countless victims. Nuclear testing is an act that leads to the development and proliferation of nuclear weapons, and the United States of America has signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. President Trump’s claim that China, Russia, and Pakistan are conducting nuclear tests is false; North Korea is the only country that has conducted nuclear tests in recent years.
Some countries possess nuclear arsenals large enough to destroy humanity multiple times over. Nuclear weapons must be abolished without delay. What your country must do is take the lead in advancing the path toward nuclear abolition. We strongly demand the withdrawal of President Trump’s remarks, which turn their back on peace.
Sayonara, Food Additives!
Many people want to avoid consuming food additives as much as possible, while others believe they are safe because the government says so. How does the government evaluate the safety of additives? Are they truly safe?
In Europe and the United States, research reports on the health impacts of synthetic food colourings and artificial sweeteners are emerging one after another. Japan’s food additive regulations have been driven by external pressure from the United States; it is now reported that the US is considering a comprehensive ban on coal-tar-based colorants, starting with restrictions on Red No. 3. However, neither Japan’s Food Safety Commission nor the Consumer Affairs Agency shows any sign of action.
Get our new booklet, and for now, the only option is to avoid additives. Check labels and reduce your intake of additives.
● Additives to Avoid at All Costs
● US Moves to Eliminate Major Synthetic Food Colorings
● Survey on Food Additive Usage
● School Lunch Standards Must Prioritize Children’s Health
This booklet explains that there are problems with the government’s safety assessments and that various research studies worldwide have revealed health impacts from additives previously deemed safe. We highlight specific additives you should avoid and explains their risks.
This is a must-read for anyone wanting to say goodbye to additives.
Table of Contents:
Part 1: Are Additives Safe?
Part 2: Can You Tell from the Label?
Part 3: Additives to Avoid
Part 4: Isn’t This an Additive?
Part 5: Reducing Additives
Author: Eiji Hara, Consumers Union of Japan
Click here for information in Japanese
Peace and the End of “American War” in Vietnam
50th Anniversary of Peace in Vietnam (October 1, 2025)
Earlier this year, I visited Vietnam. Red flags and the number “50” were displayed everywhere. In 1975, the fall of Saigon and the reunification of the country brought an end to the “American War” (as the Vietnamese call it). More than that, this war put an end to a history of suffering under Japanese imperialist rule, which lasted until 1945, and the long humiliating French colonial rule.
1975 may seem like a distant past, but traces of the intense bombing by U.S. forces, especially the use of chemical weapons like napalm and defoliants containing dioxin-contaminated 2,4-D and other herbicides, remain to this day. The environmental destruction caused by this defoliant campaign was described as “ecocide” by figures like Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme. Soldiers from the United States, Australia, and South Korea also suffered long-term health consequences. According to the Vietnamese government, up to 3 million people suffer from illnesses caused by Agent Orange (a mixture of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T). What I witnessed were elderly and young victims, severely disabled even 50 years later, on the beautiful streets of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City).
Today, as we advocate for food safety and oppose genetically modified crops like soybeans, we recognize that U.S. companies have developed genetically modified soybeans and corn resistant to 2,4-D. While this is certainly different from the “spraying of Agent Orange,” the contamination of food with such chemicals is utterly unacceptable. As U.S. farmers continue spraying, residual levels of 2,4-D and other herbicides have been detected near schools across the United States, as reported by the nonprofit media outlet Investigate Midwest. With growing empathy for chemical poisoning victims worldwide, this situation is ethically intolerable.
By Martin J. Frid, Co-chair Consumers Union of Japan
Update: Peace in Asia
Joint Statement Sent to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, and 10 ASEAN Countries (8 September 2025)
Consumers Union of Japan and the Housewives’ Federation have sent the Joint Statement for Asian Peace to the Prime Minister of Japan and the embassies of South Korea, Taiwan, China, as well as the 10 ASEAN countries.
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
We are Japanese consumer organizations working to establish consumer rights and protect lives and livelihoods.
We express our deepest respect to the ASEAN member states, which have long pursued diplomatic efforts to build peace in the Southeast Asian region.
We are writing to share our Joint Statement on Asian Peace, which advocates “dialogue over force,” with ASEAN, an organization that values and practices dialogue above all else. We have enclosed the statement. We would be grateful if you would take the time to review it.
We issued the Joint Statement for Asian Peace in August 2024, wishing for the swiftest possible end to the unceasing wars and conflicts around the world and for all people living on Earth to be able to live in peace. Currently, 30 civic groups active in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and New Zealand have endorsed it. Thus, there are people across Asia who sincerely wish for peace and support solidarity among citizens.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. As citizens of Japan, whose Constitution advocates non-aggression, we will continue dialogue and exchange to further expand and deepen connections between people seeking peace. This is to prevent any more wars from occurring in Asia and around the world.
Japanese text here