E.coli crisis could prompt interest in irradiation for salads, IAEA

This is what happened in the US, where irradiation was approved as a treatment for killing pathogens on spinach and lettuce following an E. coli scare in 2006, Carl Blackburn, food irradiation specialist at the IAEA told FoodProductionDaily.com.

The issue has once again raced up the food safety agenda in the aftermath of the deadly outbreak of E.coli 104:H4 originating in Germany that has so far killed 47 and sickened around 4,000 people.

Irradiation using low dosage treatments would be beneficial especially if used in combination with washing and packaging technology, said Blackburn.

The technique destroys microbial populations, reduces the need for chemical pesticides and fumigants, and does not impair the flavour of the produce, said the specialist, whose division AGE is the joint IAEA/FAO division for Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture.

Drawbacks​

But although some European countries already approve the use of irradiation for salads and the science is well developed, there are drawbacks related to implementation on a fully commercial scale, Blackburn explained.

Firstly, he said there is limited capacity, with few irradiation facilities that treat food for the EU market.

Most of these are multipurpose irradiators, said the specialist, geared towards irradiating medical products which in contrast to salads require high levels of treatment.

In the EU, there are less than 30 food irradiation facilities, he said, with another 10 facilities in non-EU countries which are allowed to irradiate food for the European Market.

“I don’t think any have considered irradiating salads and I doubt many of these treatment facilities are situated close to major salad producers,”​ said Blackburn.

In addition, there is also a regulatory hurdle in the region, he said. Although several EU countries such as France, the UK and the Netherlands can allow a wide range of foods to be irradiated for sale to consumers, most EU countries only allow the irradiation of dried aromatic herbs, spices and vegetable seasonings.

European law concerning which foods can be irradiated has yet to be fully harmonised, he said.

Consumer perceptions​

The specialist also said that, despite any private enthusiasm for the technique from the European food industry, he felt that no one wanted to be the first to embrace the technology in public.

“EU law requires that irradiated-food is labelled as irradiated or treated with ionising radiation. My feeling is that major retailers are unwilling to stock such labelled products, fearing customers will mistakenly associate the wording as a warning rather than view it positively.​”​

Former EFSA chairman Professor Patrick Wall also agreed that consumers remained sceptical about the use of irradiation for food products.

“Our anecdotal experience has been that food businesses are reluctant to adopt the technology due to concerns that consumers would choose not to buy their products if they are irradiated,” ​he told this publication.​

“Rather than think of it as a first cousin of their microwave many of them think of Chernobyl,”​ he said.

“With salads, the words people think of are fresh, wholesome and natural and irradiation as a technology does not sit well here.”​

Misinformation​

A spokesperson for FSA told FoodProductionDaily.com it is difficult to get the facts across about irradiation when there is a large amount of “misinformation​”, particularly on the internet, with a small number of “very vocal groups​” opposed to its wider use.

“It is also difficult to judge what the general consumers’ attitude would really be when there is no practical experience of seeing irradiated foods for sale on the UK market,”​ said the authority.

“It is worth noting that irradiation is widely used in sterilising medical devices and pharmaceutical products without the same level of negative publicity.”​

The spokesperson said it was difficult to know if the E.coli outbreak would change people’s perceptions about the technique.

“Over the past few years, the US has had a number of high profile cases of food poisoning by E. coli which have been followed by promotion of irradiation in some sections of the media, while some irradiated foods are now on sale in the US, the market remains very small,”​ said the spokesperson.

The future for irradiation​

Despite the potential drawbacks of irradiation as a decontamination technique, Blackburn said he was hopeful for the future, as recent advances in food irradiation technology include the development of commercial scale X-ray facilities.

“Maybe the use of X-rays generated by machine (rather than gamma irradiation which relies on radiation emitted from radioactive sources) could in future play a role,”​ he said.

Parts of the food industry already use low powered X-rays to detect bone fragments in meat products therefore, the use of more powerful X-ray machines to treat salad might be viewed favourably, said the specialist.

“The issue with labelling may persist, but hopefully people will begin to view the technology favourably or at least understand that it doesn’t mean the food is radioactive, but it means that the food has been zapped,” ​he said.

The IAEA works for “the safe, secure and peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology”, ​running and supporting research centers and scientific laboratories in Vienna and Seibersdorf, Austria; Monaco; and Trieste, Italy.