Indonesia finds radiation at clove farm in probe sparked by shrimp and spices contaminated with cesium-137 in US

Jakarta Indonesian authorities found traces of radioactivity on a clove farm on the island of Sumatra, a government spokesman said on Tuesday, as Jakarta expanded an investigation that began after the US Food and Drug Administration discovered that spices coming from Indonesia were contaminated with the element cesium-137.

the The FDA recently said It discovered the presence of cesium-137 in a sample of cloves from PT Natural Java Spice during an examination after examining the radioactive isotope. It was also detected in August in a sample of frozen shrimp From Indonesia.

The Indonesian government then launched an investigation, sending inspection teams to a processing facility and farm on the island of Java and another farm on Sumatra, task force spokesman Para Hasibuan told AFP on Tuesday.

He said that the team only found traces of radioactivity at the clove farm in Lampung, Sumatra, without revealing further details, adding that the government had prevented the farm from selling cloves as a precaution.

“Until a conclusive result is reached, we have requested that cloves not be sold from the farm,” Parra said, adding that the Indonesian Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, or Papeten, is testing samples from the farm. “We must determine the source, and how the cloves there are contaminated.”

The discovery comes after authorities discovered traces of cesium-137 in at least 22 facilities in the Sikandi Industrial Park, about 35 miles west of Jakarta.

The government has tightened restrictions in the area and conducted vehicle inspections for possible contamination.

Environment Minister Hanif Faisal Norfiq said in an Instagram post that his country has also suspended imports of scrap iron and steel, said to be the source of the pollution, until the “system for monitoring radioactive materials is fully strengthened.”

The US Food and Drug Administration has banned the two Indonesian companies’ products until they can demonstrate that the problems that allowed the contamination to occur have been resolved, the agency said.

The agency also said shrimp and spices from certain regions in Indonesia will require an import certificate starting in late October, based on the risk of potential cesium-137 contamination.

“This represents the first use of this congressional authority to address persistent food safety issues while maintaining the flow of commerce for safe products,” the FDA noted in its statement a week ago.

The US Food and Drug Administration issued a recall in August after the radioactive isotope was discovered in shrimp sourced by PT Bahari Makmur Sejati. The agency said that long-term exposure to even low doses of cesium-137 is associated with a higher risk of cancer.

Radioactive isotopes, which are created by nuclear reactions, are used in a variety of industrial, medical and research applications.