[NUCLEAR IRRADIATION OF FOOD]

at dinnertime in a typical American home the science of food preservation is seldom thought oh sure mom thinks about food she prepares it and in addition she logs home about two and a half tons from the supermarket every year but how it got to the market doesn't concern her and dad's thoughts about food often concerned paying for it of course youngsters think about eating and they eat that's for sure Oh mothers remembered that she forgot to fix the dessert how about the fresh strawberries you bought several days ago Oh too bad they've spoiled food spoilage is a problem a small problem here in the home but it's a big problem to food merchants and distributors because of the need to stop the staggering waste of fruit through spoilage and the desire we have for more fresh fruit scientists are constantly searching for new preservation methods to reduce the spoilage it is estimated that 1/5 of the fresh fruits and vegetables harvested in the United States spoils before reaching the dinner table in spite of advanced technical facilities for handling and preserving food to ensure that most foods reach us in good marketing condition spoilage still remains a tremendous problem spoilage costs the strawberry industry in California alone more than five million dollars a year research sponsored by the Atomic Energy Commission and the Department of the Army has led to a new and novel method of preserving food called radiation pasteurization this use of the friendly atom is but one of many peaceful and safe uses of atomic energy the focal points for this research are in the two major food production areas of the United States at the University of Florida in Gainesville and the Davis campus of the University of California here at Davis radiation pasteurization of selected West Coast varieties of fruits and vegetables is being studied to determine the most favorable conditions and methods of processing that will yield the best spoilage reduction and shelf-life extension similar work is being carried out in other regions of the country on those fruits and varieties of fruits principally grown in those research areas this research sponsored by the AEC and the Army over the past decade has unraveled many of the unknown factors which first stood as obstacles to the development of radiation pasteurization continuing research animal feeding experiments and other testing are proving that radiation tester ization products are wholesome and safe radiation pasteurization is easily accomplished by exposing fruit to energy rays from a radioisotope from an x-ray source or from an electron accelerator this energy is similar in many respects to heat and light that radiates from the Sun most of the research in food preservation has been done using gamma rays from a material called cobalt-60 the gamma rays penetrate food and knock out spoilage organisms without causing the fruit to become radioactive the basic research problem is to determine how to obtain maximum destruction of undesirable spoilage organisms without harming desirable characteristics of the fruit while at the same time retaining the full nutritive values several small array meters have been placed at key research sites to provide irradiation support for the development of this process fruits are loaded into a chamber for irradiation after the exact exposure time has been set the chamber is lowered near the water shielded radiation source for the pasteurizing treatment studies to date indicate that the most important role irradiation pasteurization will perform for fresh fruit is to reduce decay and spoilage during the normal marketing period strawberries are one of the most promising products both from the technical and economical points of view these two boxes of berries were harvested on the same day from the same field both have been stored in a refrigerator for 8 days at 41 degrees Fahrenheit the radiation pasteurized berries remain free of decay and spoilage the untreated berries well see for yourself such visual evidence is only part of the story extensive testing included comparison of vitamin C retention in both treated and untreated strawberries indicating virtually no nutritional differences crushing resistance tests show that irradiated and unny radiated fruit are copper color analysis tests measured the red color content president irradiated strawberries for comparison with untreated strawberry color extracts again no significant difference is found comparison and evaluation of the effects of vibration and handling stress on both untreated and treated fruits is made in simulated transportation situations actual transportation tests of many fruits have confirmed the favorable findings of the simulated transportation tests in the laboratory thus the most effective levels of radiation have been determined and correlated with refrigeration and handling Facts taste evaluation tests confirm that safe and effective radiation treatments do not alter the delicate taste of the farm-fresh parties samples to be tested for aroma are crushed and served and covered buses at one session and in slices at another to see if differences in preparation would affect the result this personal testing of aroma texture and flavor is performed in a manner that is as scientifically objective as the scientists can devise the conclusion of these many and varied taste tests confirms the belief that irradiation can significantly reduce the amount of decay and spoilage in strawberries and other fruits without adverse effects on fruit quality provided that normal good handling practices are followed from the harvest to the consumer the Atomic Energy Commission selected only a limited number of fruits and vegetables for development work several but not all show excellent promise strawberries pleasantly head the list in terms of most favorable response pink and ripe tomatoes are good candidates sprouting losses in both onions and potatoes can be curbed by radiation pasteurization navel oranges respond favorably and several peach varieties benefit an interesting side effect in some varieties of both peaches and nectarines is an increase in I appeal of course not all fruits have been studied to determine the keeping quality radiation pasteurization provides nor can all fruits ever really be processed this way the generally good results have encouraged many other countries to also undertake programmes of radiation pasteurization in our newest state Hawaii tropical fruits are being studied the extra shelf life given to papayas by radiation pasteurization might well extend the marketing area of this delicious melon like fruit Hawaiian mangoes now quarantined because of an insect pests the seed needle may also gain new markets because of radiation pasteurization mangoes once picked irradiated and properly handled maybe distributed far more widely mango is relatively new to many of us are in fact the most widely eaten fruit elsewhere in the world wandering about bananas a relatively light treatment of radiation pasteurization will the ripening of green bananas for about two weeks allowing that much additional time for shipment from the plantations to the markets final ripening may be easily controlled at the appropriate marketing time yes radiation pasteurization in the nuclear age of technology offers quite a potential in food preservation all the rigorous testing underway has one main goal to develop a process which reduces food spoilage and ensures a wholesome nutritious product only after the United States Food and Drug Administration has carefully approved each food will you see it in the market so far several foods have this clearance bacon wheat wheat products and white potatoes others are expected to have it soon to the north Canada has been using commercial potato irradiation for sprout inhibition since 1965 making this the free world's first commercial food irradiation application so all there just isn't any substitute for true freshness that Orchard fresh taste texture and special flavor cannot be matched so in a still hungry world with a rapidly increasing population fruits and vegetables from fields like these through new knowledge and methods of food preservation radiation pasteurization soon will enable us to enjoy many highly perishable seasonal delicacies with a farm-fresh taste and for the housewife initial cost estimates indicate that savings in spoilage can offset added costs for radiation preservation does this add up to good eating we think it does