Irradiation

Every year, an estimated 5,000 Americans die and 76 million become ill from food-borne illnesses such as E. coli 0157:H7, campylobacter and aflatoxin poisoning. The problem moved into the spotlight in the second half of 2002, following the high-profile recalls of 23,484,840 pounds of infected meat, 23 deaths, 3 miscarriages and a reported 233 illnesses from E. coli and listeria contamination. Awareness and concern among American consumers is at an all-time high, and has re-ignited the debate over food irradiation.


Irradiation is a controversial issue. Providers of the technology claim that it provides safer, cleaner, bacteria-free meat with a longer shelf life. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says 500 studies have shown that irradiated food is "safe and wholesome and nutritionally adequate." The USDA is introducing irradiated meat into the school lunch program, an increasing number of supermarkets are requesting irradiated products, and consumer acceptance is increasing, at least in the US. A nationwide survey conducted by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association in November found 48 percent of Americans likely to purchase irradiated meat. The level of acceptance was up from 38 percent in February, before the recalls occurred.


However, the European Commission has rejected irradiation for everything except dried herbs and spices and vegetable stock, saying there is insufficient evidence proving that it is safe to eat irradiated foods. A report jointly issued by Public Citizen and Global Resource Action Center for the Environment has accused WHO of ignoring or downplaying evidence from studies indicating health problems resulting from eating irradiated foods, and handed the power to research food irradiation to the International Atomic Energy Agency, a body that promotes nuclear technology. The report, "Bad Taste: The Disturbing Truth About the World Health Organization's Endorsement of Food Irradiation"[69] came just a few months before a report in a British newspaper alleged that WHO had been "infiltrated" by the food industry, undermining its stamp of approval on a range of food issues.


Irradiation is out of step with the principles of organic food production. Consumers expect organic foods to be fresh, clean, minimally processed and free from any artificial inputs, including irradiation. In a survey of companies in the organic food trade, irradiation was rated the least acceptable out of a list of 323 types of processing. [68]

What happens when food is irradiated?

Proponents of irradiation claim the technology is safe because the electron beams, X-rays or gamma rays used pass through the food without leaving it radioactive. Bacteria and insects are not killed, but their DNA becomes damaged and they cannot reproduce.


But irradiation disrupts the structure of everything it passes through, not just bacterial and insect DNA. The DNA, vitamins and proteins of the food are also broken up, creating 'free radicals' - chemicals that contribute to many degenerative diseases including heart disease, dementia, cancer and cataracts. The free radicals kill some bacteria, but also 'bounce' around in the food, damaging more vitamins and proteins and creating new chemicals called 'unique radiolytic products' (URPs).


Some URPs are only found in irradiated food, some are known toxins (such as benzene, formaldehyde, lipid peroxides) and none have been tested for safety.[32], [33], [37], [70] For example, when food containing fat is irradiated, a URP called 2-dodecylcyclobutanone (2-DCB) is formed. This chemical is only found in irradiated foods, and has been shown to break strands of DNA in human and rat cells.[34], [35] 2-DCB has been found in numerous types of irradiated food, including beef, pork, lamb, chicken, eggs, mangoes, and papayas.[36]



Irradiated food is toxic

Research dating back to the 1950s has revealed a wide range of health problems in both humans and animals that ate irradiated food:


     • In 1973, the National Institute of Nutrition tested irradiated wheat on a variety of experimental animals - mice, rats, monkeys - and even some undernourished children.[39] The children and monkeys showed increased levels of polyploid white blood cells - that is, cells which have abnormal numbers of chromosomes.

     • Two independent reports published in 1966 showed that irradiated sucrose is extremely toxic to human white blood cells - the cells divide poorly and their chromosomes become severely damaged.[40], [41]

     • Numerous studies have shown that feeding irradiated food to mice, rats, dogs, fruit flies or monkeys causes death, low body weight, tumors,[42], [39] internal bleeding,[43], [44] nutritional muscular dystrophy,[45] abnormal numbers of chromosomes[39] and chromosome mutations,[46], [47] physical deformities[48] and radioactive liver, kidney, stomach, gastrointestinal tract, blood, urine and feces.[49]

Irradiated foods have never been fully tested for their effects on human health. The only human feeding study, on underfed Indian children, showed disturbing changes in white blood cells after just 15 weeks. No one knows what the effects would be of a life-long diet that includes irradiated foods.[70]

Irradiation destroys nutrients

Irradiating fruits and vegetables destroys up to 95 percent of the vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids.[32], [50], [51] Vitamins are most sensitive to the effects of irradiation, especially vitamins C and E, which are 'anti-oxidants'. Anti-oxidants are extremely beneficial to human health, as they protect cells from the effects of free radicals. But irradiation stimulates the production of free radicals, which speeds up the destruction of these anti-oxidants.

Vitamins are already lost during canning, freezing, drying, storing and cooking - irradiation is yet another nutrient-depleting process that food undergoes before it reaches the plate. Vitamins continue being destroyed long after irradiation, because free radicals remain in food and continue to react during storage and cooking.[33] And because irradiation extends shelf-life, more destruction is likely to occur before the food is finally eaten.

Vitamin losses have been measured in a range of foods:

     • For irradiated, cooked hazelnuts, 91 percent of vitamin E is lost during treatment, compared with 33 percent for unirradiated hazelnuts.[51]

     • According to California Day-Fresh Foods, irradiating orange juice strips away 48 percent of its beta-carotene, 13 percent of its vitamin C and 10 percent of its vitamin A.[54]

     • Irradiated liver loses 4 percent more vitamin A than unirradiated liver after one week and 18 percent more after two weeks.[55]

     • Irradiated potatoes lose 50 percent of their beta-carotene content after six months in storage.[56]

     • Up to 80 percent of the vitamin A in irradiated eggs is lost after one month of storage.[57]

     • For irradiated, cooked rolled oats, 74 percent of vitamin B1 (thiamine) is lost during treatment, compared with 8 percent for unirradiated oats.[58] Chicken loses between 11 and 45 percent of its B1 content [59] and haddock, beef, turkey, ham, bacon, peaches and beets show losses of 70-95 percent.[60]

     • One-third of vitamin C in potatoes is destroyed,[61] and after 40 days of storage, lemons lose 90 percent of vitamin C.[62]

     • 91 percent of vitamin B6 and 33 percent of vitamin B12 are lost in irradiated beef stored for 15 months.[52], [53]

Wet dog smell

Irradiation does not only destroy nutritional content, but also affects the flavor, texture and smell of foods. Irradiated meat, fish and poultry are reported to have a 'wet dog smell,' and fruits and vegetables become mushy.[63], [64], [65] Pork can turn red and eggs can lose their color and become runny.[38] Dairy products develop off-flavors and soft fruits become unacceptably soft. Irradiated fats easily become rancid because free radicals oxidize the fats. For this reason, fatty foods are irradiated only if they are likely to be cooked, or used within a short time. Luminescence, or glowing, has also been reported.[68]

Another side effect of irradiating fruit and vegetables is delayed ripening. This may initially seem like a benefit, but may not be. There is no clear understanding of what causes the delay - it may be due to a change in the structure of the food.[32] Irradiated pears fail to soften and have an insipid flavor.[66] Apples have a hard, wrinkled skin with sunken patches and an 'alcoholic' or 'off'-flavor.[67]

Irradiation resistance

Like antibiotic resistance, bacteria can also develop irradiation resistance. Irradiation doesn't kill all bacteria, and those that survive will be irradiation resistant. These bacteria will multiply and eventually work their way back to 'factory farms.' Irradiation resistant bacteria that contaminate meat will no longer be killed by current doses of irradiation. Higher and higher doses of irradiation will be needed, and stronger bacteria will contaminate the food supply.[70]

Irradiation can increase the risk of food poisoning

Even when bacteria are killed by irradiation, the toxins they produce are not destroyed, and some toxins can even increase.[68] Production of aflatoxin, a toxin produced by Aspergillus molds, is stimulated in surviving irradiated Aspergillus. Botulin, the toxin that causes botulism food poisoning also becomes more dangerous after irradiation. Several incidents and studies have indicated that irradiated seafood has a higher risk of botulism than non-irradiated seafood.

In addition, irradiation destroys harmless or friendly bacteria which 'crowd out' harmful bacteria. With the friendly bacteria gone, there is more room for unwelcome bacteria to move in. For example, soft fruits, such as strawberries, have been shown to be vulnerable to re-infection after irradiation. To be effective and marketable, irradiated strawberries need to be packaged in a material suitable for irradiation, such as polyethylene film.

Consumers could become more careless about hygiene if irradiation was widely used. Irradiation doesn't kill all the bacteria in a food, and after a few hours at room temperature, bacteria remaining in irradiated meat or poultry can multiply to the same level as before irradiation.

Irradiated feces is still feces

Irradiation may kill most harmful bacteria, but does not tackle the source of contamination. Many factory farms, processing plants and slaughterhouses greatly increase the spread of bacteria, as meat is regularly contaminated by feces, urine, pus and vomit.

Many consumers fear that widespread irradiation of food would lead meatpackers to actually decrease hygiene, because they could 'clean-up' high levels of fecal and bacterial contamination just before it was shipped. Irradiated meat may not have any dangerous bacteria in it, but would still be contaminated with feces.

Organic food is never irradiated

International organic guidelines prohibit the use of irradiation on food or any of its ingredients. In addition to its effects on human health, nutrition and flavor, organic handlers also consider the technology expensive and favor more cost-effective techniques.

Organic food can meet safety requirements without ionizing radiation. Other, more established good manufacturing practices are more compatible with organic handling. Advances in other techniques related to the widespread adoption of HACCP have improved food safety. Proven methods suggested by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI)[68] include:

     • Improved sanitation on the farm, slaughterhouse and processing plant
     • Hot water treatment
     • Removal of free moisture and field heat
     • Maintenance of optimal storage temperature and humidity,
     • Improved quality control
     • Worker hygiene
     • Refrigeration and freezing
     • Ozone
     • Hydrogen peroxide
     • Controlled atmosphere
     • Carbon dioxide
     • Timing of harvest (pick-to-order)
     • Local marketing
     • Consumer education
     • Beneficial organisms such as Pseudomonas syringae and parasitic wasps
     • Improved assays for pathogens

Irradiation destroys most harmful bacteria and insects and prolongs shelf-life, but the price is high. New chemicals are created which are toxic to human DNA but which have never been tested for safety. Nutrition is drastically reduced and flavor and texture can be impaired. Irradiation resistant bacteria are created and the risk of diseases such as botulism is increased. Meat is more likely to be contaminated with (sterilized) feces.

Irradiation is not a substitute for hygiene. Consumers now have a choice between meat potentially contaminated with deadly bacteria, nutritionally-empty meat containing toxins and irradiated feces, or organic meat.