   |  | | The Radura Label | By Mike Magee, MD
Foodborne safety is front and center once again in America, spawning a boom in home-grown foods and "green" /"organic" alternatives. Confidence in an inadequately funded FDA to police food at its source, and its ability to manage global input of everything from fish to produce, has been undermined by recent challenges to everything from food to heparin to children's toys.1
Under such circumstances, technology is always viewed as a mixed blessing. A case in point is irradiation of food. On the one hand, it provides a safety net against the import of disease-inducing contaminated food, and on the other, it raises fears and reflex concerns about the hidden dangers associated with mixing science with nature.
What are the facts about food irradiation? Keeping our food safe was one of the major reasons the United States created the Food and Drug Administration. Early on, it approved and endorsed the use of technology in the form of pasteurization. Pasteurization as they defined it, is "the critical reduction of pathogens in a substance, especially a liquid, at a temperature and for a period of time that destroys objectionable organisms without major chemical alteration of the substance." 2
Irradiation of food does about the same thing, but without heat. It has been approved by all government agencies as safe and effective and carries identical objectives as pasteurization. The process does not make food radioactive nor decrease its nutritional content, yet it remains highly controversial and relatively uncommon in the U.S.2,3
There are three sources of radiation. Two are electrically generated - x-rays and electron beams. One is the result of radionuclide sources, mainly cobalt-60. All three generate energy into food but none of the three transfer radioactivity.2 In addition, the American Dietetic Association, after extensive studies, supports a Food Drug Administration finding that, "irradiation poses no important risk to any nutrient in the diet."4
The concept of irradiating food dates back 100 years. In 1904, Alan B. Green proved that irradiation can inactivate bacteria. One year later, J. Appleby took out a patent citing the use of irradiation to improve food quality. In 1918, David Gillett patented the use of irradiation to preserve organic material. By 1921, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had proved that irradiation could inactivate the parasite causing trichinosis in pork.5 In 1938, the landmark Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act was passed and 20 years later language defining the use of irradiation in food was added.2
In irradiating food, the dose is calibrated to need. The measure of radiation used in food is the kiloGray (kGy). Disinfection of foods to eliminate insects requires less than 1 kGy. Pasteurization can be accomplished with 1 - 10 kGy, while sterilization requires greater than 10 kGy.6 The FDA's maximum recommended irradiation dosage for decontaminating ground beef is just 4.5 kGy.7 The number of kGy necessary to kill common food pathogens is well known. For example, Ecoli requires .84 to .96 kGy, and Salmonella 1.98 to 2.22 kGy.5
While the incidence of food contamination is quite small, the volume can be quite large. Take the case of ground beef. Studies indicate that only .32 percent of U.S. ground beef is contaminated. But we produce 8 billion pounds of U.S. ground beef each year. 32 percent of 8 billion pounds is 26 million pounds of contaminated meat. Only 10 percent of herbs and spices, and a miniscule .002 percent of fruits, vegetables, meat and poultry in the U.S. are irradiated for safety.3
Where is food irradiation currently being utilized, and how can you tell if the food you buy has been irradiated? According to the CDC, "A facility in Florida has been irradiating strawberries and other fruits on a limited basis, to prolong shelf life. On a trial basis, fresh tropical fruits from Hawaii have been irradiated before shipping them to the mainland, instead of fumigating them to eliminate the fruit fly pests that could spread to the mainland. Some spices for commercial use have been irradiated. In addition irradiation is widely used to sterilize a variety of medical and household products, from hip joint implants to band-aids and baby pacifiers. Other technologies used to sterilize fruits, spices and medical devices use toxic chemicals, such as ethylene oxide. Use of irradiation can reduce the use of these other hazardous substances. A distinctive logo has been developed for use on food packaging, in order to identify the product as irradiated. This symbol is called the "radura" and is used internationally to mean that the food in the package has been irradiated. A written description may also be present, such as 'Irradiated to destroy harmful microbes'." 8
Will consumers buy irradiated food? Studies in the U.S. say yes, and indicate greater concerns about pesticide residues and microbiological contamination. Willingness to buy is tied to knowledge of the technology and its purpose.9 Irradiating food is not a cure-all. It does not inactivate viruses and toxins, and does not prevent subsequent human contamination.2 But it does markedly improve food safety, providing an effective critical point of control. In addition, it increases the shelf life of food, which is part of the reason NASA astronauts and the U.S. military have been dining on irradiated food since 1960. It also decreases the need for use of chemical fumigants, pesticides and other preservatives. Shelf life and quality are increasingly important in an age of globalization and worldwide food distribution.2
Expanding food irradiation to ensure food safety makes good public policy and good sense. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that irradiating 50 percent of our red meat and poultry would prevent 900,000 cases of food-borne illness per year in the U.S. and save 352 lives. The cost? Just five cents per pound of meat.10,11
Food irradiation for safety has now been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Commission, the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and NASA.
References
1. Food Safety and Food Imports from China. Congressional Testimony. 25 Sept. 2007.
2. Osterholm MT, Norgan AP. The role of irradiation in food safety. NEJM. 2004; 350:1898-1901.
3. Food irradiation: available research indicates that benefits outweigh risks. Washington DC: General Accounting Office. August 2000. (GAO/RCED-00-217.) Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
4. Wood OB, Bruhn CM. Position of the American Dietetic Association: food irradiation. J Am Diet Assoc. 2000; 100:246-253. Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
5. Thayer DW. Irradiation of food - helping to ensure food safety. NEJM. 2004; 350:1811-1812.
6. Loaharanu P. Irradiated Foods. 5th ed. rev. New York: American Council on Science and Health. May 2003. Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
7. Roybal J. Beef Industry logs successful week in E. coli O157:H7 battle. BEEF Magazine's Cow-Calf Weekly. 26 Sept. 2003. Accessed 8 April 2004. Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Food Irradiation. 11 Oct. 2005.
9. Bruhn, Christine. Consumer Attitudes and Market Response to Irradiated Food. International Association for Food Protection. M.1 Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 58, Number 2. February 1995 , pp. 175-181(7).
10. Tauxe RV. Food safety and irradiation: protecting the public from foodborne infections. Emerg Infect Dis. 2001; 7(Suppl)516-521. Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
11. Frenzen PD et. al. Consumer acceptance of irradiated meat and poultry products. Issues in food safety economics. USDA/ERS agriculture information bulletin no. 757. Washington DC: Department of Agriculture. August 2000. Cited in Osterholm MT, Norgan AP.
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