Russia is hoping to increase seafood exports to China after China banned imports of Japanese seafood following the release into the sea of radioactive water treated at the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Russia is one of the largest suppliers of seafood to China, with 894 Russian companies authorized to export seafood, Russian food safety regulator Rosselkhoznadzor said in July.

Rosselkhoznadzor is seeking to increase the number of exporters, it said in a statement Friday evening.

Overall, the Chinese market has a favorable outlook for Russian fish products," the Rosselkhoznadzor statement said. We want to increase the number of certified Russian companies and vessels, the number of products and their range."

To assist in this effort, Rosselkhoznadzor plans to continue its dialogue with China on seafood safety issues and to finalize negotiations with China on regulations for the supply of Russian seafood to the country, the statement said.

China has already banned some food imports from Japan, but Thursday's blanket ban was prompted by concerns about the "risk of radioactive contamination" after it began discharging treated water.

Between January and August, more than half of Russia's fish exports were destined for China, the statement said, without giving specific figures, mainly pollock, herring, halibut, sardines, cod and crab.

Russia exported 2.3 million tons of seafood worth about $6.1 billion last year, or about half of its total catch, with China, South Korea and Japan the biggest importers, according to the Russian fisheries agency.

Japan has said the Russian and Chinese criticisms are not supported by scientific evidence and that pollution levels in the water would be below the standards considered safe to drink by the World Health Organization.

Nonetheless, Rosselkhoznadzor said it had stepped up screening of Japanese seafood imports, despite the minuscule amount.

The regulator also said that about 70 percent of Russia's seafood comes from Russia's Far East and that the direction of the region's water currents "will prevent contamination of seafood caught by Russian ships".

The government has also tightened radiation controls on seafood caught in Russian waters relatively close to Fukushima and will test selected samples for radiation levels, the Interfax news agency quoted the Rosselkhoznadzor Pacific office as saying on Thursday.