Radiation Protection of Foods, and Nature of Microbial Radiation Resistance
385
1985). In 1986, fermented pork sausage (Nham) was irradiated in Thailand at a minimum of 2.0 kGy,
and the product was sold in Bangkok.
47 Puerto Rican mangoes were irradiated in 1986 at up to 1.0 kGy,
flown to Miami, Florida, and sold. Hawaiian papayas were treated at doses of 0.41–0.51 kGy to control
pests in 1987 and later sold to the public. USDA approval was granted for Hawaiian papayas in 1989
for insect control. In May 1990, the USDA approved the irradiation of poultry up to 3.0 kGy, and on
September 2, 1993, irradiated poultry was sold in a retail grocery store in Illinois for the first time.
65
Strawberries were irradiated at 2.0 kGy and sold in Lyon, France, in 1987, and in the United States
on January 25, 1992, in the state of Florida. In 1995, the states of Maine and New York repealed their
bans on the sale of irradiated foods. Sprout inhibition and insect disinfestations continue to be the
most widely used direct applications of food irradiation.
In 1981, a joint Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)/International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA)/WHO Expert Committee on food irradiation found that foods given an overall average of
up to 10.0 kGy were unconditionally safe. At least 40 countries have approved irradiation of one or
more food products, and 29 are using food irradiation commercially. For the control of salmonellae in
animal feed and pet foods in the United States, 2–25 kGy was approved in 1995; and, in 1997, 4.5 kGy
was approved for refrigerated raw, and 7.5 kGy for frozen, raw ground beef.
In the early 1970s, Canada approved for test marketing a maximum dose of 1.5 kGy for fresh cod
and haddock fillets. In 1983, the Codex Alimentarius Commission suggested 1.5 or 2.2 kGy for teleost
fish and fish products.
19 One of the obstacles to getting food irradiation approved on a wider scale in
the United States is the way irradiation is defined. It is considered an additive rather than a process,
which it is. This means that irradiated foods must be labeled as such. Another area of concern is the
fate of C. botulinum spores (see below), and yet another is the concern that nonpathogens may become
pathogens or that the virulence of pathogens may be increased after exposure to subradappertization
doses. There is no evidence that the latter occurs.
74
As of the first quarter of 2003, over 7,000 supermarkets and other retail stores in the United
States were selling irradiated ground beef, according to the American Council on Science and Health.
Food irradiation has been approved by the American Medical Association, the American Dietetic
Association, the Institute of Food Technologists, and the United Nations. The U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention has estimated that if only one-half of the ground beef, pork, poultry, and
processed luncheon meats in the U.S. were irradiated, there would be over 880,000 fewer cases of
foodborne illness (Food Protection Trends, July 2003). An agency of the U.S. government has approved
the use of irradiated ground beef for school disricts, and this product is to be made available by the
fall of 2004.
When low-acid foods are irradiated at doses that do not effect the destruction of C. botulinum spores,
legitimate questions about the safety of such foods are raised, especially when they are held under
conditions that allow for growth and toxin production. Because these organisms would be destroyed
by radappertization, only products subjected to radicidation and radurization are of concern here. In
regard to the radurization of fish, Giddings
22 has pointed out that the lean whitefish species are the
best candidates for irradiation, whereas high-fat fishes such as herring are not, because they are more
botulogenic. This investigator noted that when botulinal spores are found on edible lean whitefish,
they occur at less than 1/g.
EFFECT OF IRRADIATION ON FOOD QUALITY
The undesirable changes that occur in certain irradiated foods may be caused directly by irradiation
or indirectly as a result of post irradiation reactions. Water undergoes radiolysis when irradiated in the
385
1985). In 1986, fermented pork sausage (Nham) was irradiated in Thailand at a minimum of 2.0 kGy,
and the product was sold in Bangkok.
47 Puerto Rican mangoes were irradiated in 1986 at up to 1.0 kGy,
flown to Miami, Florida, and sold. Hawaiian papayas were treated at doses of 0.41–0.51 kGy to control
pests in 1987 and later sold to the public. USDA approval was granted for Hawaiian papayas in 1989
for insect control. In May 1990, the USDA approved the irradiation of poultry up to 3.0 kGy, and on
September 2, 1993, irradiated poultry was sold in a retail grocery store in Illinois for the first time.
65
Strawberries were irradiated at 2.0 kGy and sold in Lyon, France, in 1987, and in the United States
on January 25, 1992, in the state of Florida. In 1995, the states of Maine and New York repealed their
bans on the sale of irradiated foods. Sprout inhibition and insect disinfestations continue to be the
most widely used direct applications of food irradiation.
In 1981, a joint Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)/International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA)/WHO Expert Committee on food irradiation found that foods given an overall average of
up to 10.0 kGy were unconditionally safe. At least 40 countries have approved irradiation of one or
more food products, and 29 are using food irradiation commercially. For the control of salmonellae in
animal feed and pet foods in the United States, 2–25 kGy was approved in 1995; and, in 1997, 4.5 kGy
was approved for refrigerated raw, and 7.5 kGy for frozen, raw ground beef.
In the early 1970s, Canada approved for test marketing a maximum dose of 1.5 kGy for fresh cod
and haddock fillets. In 1983, the Codex Alimentarius Commission suggested 1.5 or 2.2 kGy for teleost
fish and fish products.
19 One of the obstacles to getting food irradiation approved on a wider scale in
the United States is the way irradiation is defined. It is considered an additive rather than a process,
which it is. This means that irradiated foods must be labeled as such. Another area of concern is the
fate of C. botulinum spores (see below), and yet another is the concern that nonpathogens may become
pathogens or that the virulence of pathogens may be increased after exposure to subradappertization
doses. There is no evidence that the latter occurs.
74
As of the first quarter of 2003, over 7,000 supermarkets and other retail stores in the United
States were selling irradiated ground beef, according to the American Council on Science and Health.
Food irradiation has been approved by the American Medical Association, the American Dietetic
Association, the Institute of Food Technologists, and the United Nations. The U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention has estimated that if only one-half of the ground beef, pork, poultry, and
processed luncheon meats in the U.S. were irradiated, there would be over 880,000 fewer cases of
foodborne illness (Food Protection Trends, July 2003). An agency of the U.S. government has approved
the use of irradiated ground beef for school disricts, and this product is to be made available by the
fall of 2004.
When low-acid foods are irradiated at doses that do not effect the destruction of C. botulinum spores,
legitimate questions about the safety of such foods are raised, especially when they are held under
conditions that allow for growth and toxin production. Because these organisms would be destroyed
by radappertization, only products subjected to radicidation and radurization are of concern here. In
regard to the radurization of fish, Giddings
22 has pointed out that the lean whitefish species are the
best candidates for irradiation, whereas high-fat fishes such as herring are not, because they are more
botulogenic. This investigator noted that when botulinal spores are found on edible lean whitefish,
they occur at less than 1/g.
EFFECT OF IRRADIATION ON FOOD QUALITY
The undesirable changes that occur in certain irradiated foods may be caused directly by irradiation
or indirectly as a result of post irradiation reactions. Water undergoes radiolysis when irradiated in the