Originally published February 26 2006
UK study finds widespread use of irradiated ingredients in the food industry
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
In the food industry, irradiation is a method of prolonging shelf life, but the UK Food Standards Agency remains skeptical of the practice's safety, and in a recent testing exercise, the agency found that many ingredients in supplements had undergone the process.
In a food supplement enforcement exercise carried out by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) with local authorities, 48 products from a variety of outlets were examined.
11 supplements were completely irradiated and 13 had an irradiated ingredient.
Although the FSA says that these findings should not give rise to health concerns, the issue again highlights the fact that irradiation is still not acceptable in the UK.
Irradiation, used to prolong the shelf life of food products and/or to reduce health hazards, is a physical treatment of food with high-energy, ionising radiation.
It exposes food to electron beams, X-rays or gamma rays, and produces a similar effect to pasteurisation, cooking, or other forms of heat treatment, but with less effect on look and texture.
Although an accepted manufacturing process in the USA and approved for use since 1963 to control mould and insect infestation in wheat and to inhibit the growth of sprouts on potatoes, European consumers remain sceptical of the food safety aspect.
These must be irradiated in an approved EU facility, labelled 'irradiated' or 'treated with ionising radiation' and accompanied by full and correct documentation relating to the irradiation treatment.
Imported food, which has been irradiated outside the EU, must also comply with the same labelling and documentation rules.
Again, dried aromatic herbs, spices and vegetable seasonings are the only foods that may be irradiated outside Member States of the EU and sold freely within the EU.
The announcement follows the recent removal of a food product in the UK due to the presence of an undeclared irradiated ingredient.
Danish firm Ferrosan was forced to withdraw two batch codes of Imedeen Prime Renewal food supplements due to the undeclared presence of irradiated white tea extract.
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