One in four Japanese restaurants in Hong Kong face going out of business because of a decline in customers due to fears over radiation, a news report said Monday.
The warning came from restaurant industry experts following the closure of one of the city's top Japanese restaurants at the weekend, dpa reported.
The South China Morning Report said the Yaegiku Japanese Cuisine restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui closed Friday after reporting a 70 per cent drop in business since the earthquake and tsunami triggered the nuclear crisis at Fukushima.
Simon Wong, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades, predicted that as many as one-fourth of the city's 600 Japanese restaurants could be forced out of business.
The industry is pressing the city government to issue safety certificates to assure customers that food is free of radiation, or to grant loans to help sustain the restaurants while they attempt to regain customer confidence.
Hong Kong has banned certain foods from five areas of Japan near to Fukushima, but tests from other areas have found no radiation contamination.