Fukushima horse breeder Tokue Hosokawa's farm - in pictures

Tokue Hosokawa trains one his animals on his 100-year-old farm in Iitate village, Fukushima prefecture Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Of the 130 or so animals Hosokawa and his family used to care for, only 30 remain, sustained by feed paid for with ­donations Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Hosokawa's animals used to be well-known for their ­appearances in ­commercials, TV dramas, films and local festivals Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Hosokawa takes a blood sample from one of his horses Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Since the beginning of 2013, 16 horses of Hosokawa's horses have died. Tests revealed caesium levels higher than the government-set safety limit for agricultural produce, but not high enough to threaten their health Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Iitate village, which used to be home to 6,500 people, is designated an evacuation zone because of the high levels of radioactive contamination in the area Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Hokosawa took photographs of his dead animals as part of his preparations to negotiate with Tokyo Electric Power Company for damages Photograph: Kazuma Obara

'After the accident, my family fell apart. My daughter tried to kill herself … I am relieved that she survived,' Hokosawa said Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Before the tsunami, Hokosawa provided 60 horses each year for the prestigious Soma wild horse chase. This year he provided only 20, and none of them from his farm Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Hokosawa daughter Miwa trains one of their horses Photograph: Kazuma Obara

The Soma wild horse chase was held in July in Minami Soma city, 40km away from the Fukushima nuclear power plant Photograph: Kazuma Obara

More than 400 horses took part, and more than 160,000 people attended Photograph: Kazuma Obara

The events origins go back more than 1,000 to the training of samurai warriors Photograph: Kazuma Obara

Miwa has a tattoo on her foot to remind herself of her decision to quit her job and go back to her father's farm Photograph: Kazuma Obara