FDA Approves Zapping Greens With Radiation For Food Safety

WASHINGTON — Consumers worried about salad safety may soon be able to buy fresh spinach and iceberg lettuce zapped with just enough radiation to kill E. coli and a few other germs.

The Food and Drug Administration on Friday will issue a regulation allowing spinach and lettuce sellers to take that extra step, a long-awaited move amid increasing outbreaks from raw produce.

It doesn't excuse dirty produce, warned Dr. Laura Tarantino, FDA's chief of food additive safety. Farms and processors still must follow standard rules to keep the greens as clean as possible _ and consumers, too, should wash the leaves before eating.

"What this does is give producers and processors one more tool in the toolbox to make these commodities safer and protect public health," Tarantino said.

Irradiated meat has been around for years, particularly ground beef that is a favorite hiding spot for E. coli. Spices also can be irradiated.

But the Grocery Manufacturers Association had petitioned the FDA to allow irradiation of fresh produce, too, starting with leafy greens that have sparked numerous recent outbreaks, including E. coli in spinach that in 2006 killed three people and sickened nearly 200.

The industry group wouldn't name salad suppliers ready to start irradiating. But it expects niche marketing to trickle out first _ bags of spinach and lettuce targeted to high-risk populations such as people with weak immune systems "who right now may be afraid to eat uncooked produce," said GMA's chief science officer Robert Brackett.

"It's one big step forward in improving the safety of fresh produce," he added.

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California-based produce giant Dole Food Company confirmed it is considering irradiated lettuce. "We are currently doing extensive testing with irradiation and it looks to be very promising," said spokesman William Goldfield.

A leading food safety expert said irradiation indeed can kill certain bacteria safely _ but it doesn't kill viruses that also increasingly contaminate produce, and it isn't as effective as tightening steps to prevent contamination starting at the farm.

"It won't control all hazards on these products," cautioned Caroline Smith DeWaal of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

She questioned why the FDA hasn't addressed her agency's 2006 call to require growers to document such things as how they use manure and ensure the safety of irrigation water. Irrigation is one suspect in this summer's nationwide salmonella outbreak attributed first to tomatoes and then to Mexican hot peppers.

"We are not opposed to the use of irradiation," DeWaal said. But, "it's expensive and it doesn't really address the problem at the source."

Won't zapping leafy greens with X-rays or other means of radiation leave them limp? Not with today's modern techniques and the right dose, the FDA decided.

The FDA determined that irradiation can kill E. coli, salmonella and listeria, as well as lengthen shelf life, without compromising the safety, texture or nutrient value of raw spinach lettuce _ the first greens studied.

E. coli actually is fairly sensitive to radiation, while salmonella and listeria require more energy. While irradiation doesn't sterilize, the FDA ruled that food companies could use a dose proven to dramatically reduce levels of those germs, a dose somewhat lower than meat requires.

But consumers shouldn't consider irradiation a panacea, either. While E. coli and salmonella tend to affect more people and make bigger headlines, consumer advocate DeWaal has found that norovirus contamination is a leading cause of produce outbreaks.

The irradiation rule goes into effect Friday. The FDA still is considering industry's petition to allow irradiation of additional produce. The grocery manufacturers group will push for other greens, such as Romaine lettuce, to be next, so that producers could irradiate bags of salad mixes.

While irradiated foods initially caused some consumer concern, FDA's Tarantino stressed that the food itself harbors no radiation.

"There is no residue, there's nothing left and certainly no radioactivity left," she said.

Comments

[JHCowboy]

I won't buy produce that has been through a radiation process. Typical that this approach would come from the United States where other nations in Europe (i.e. Spain) are taking a far more holistic and nature based approach. People, ESSENTIAL OILS from plants are the answer to killing ecoli and virtually all other microbes. How the hell do you think plants and animals have survived (let alone humans) for millions of years without petro-chemicals and radiation?

Grow your own fruits and vegetables and/or support your local organic and biodynamic cooperative farmers markets. That's a huge part of the answer. Using essential oils to kill microbes is extremely effective as opposed to being a victim and depending on the government (FDA and USDA) to solve the problems because they are going down the wrong track. Here is an interesting article from science daily about the use of essential oils (one of thousands of uses of essential oils) to protect produce. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061116122210.htm

[totalliberal]

Europe has been selling irradiated milk for 20 years now. It tastes great and doesn't go bad until it is opened. Then it is the same as any other milk.

BTW when you show me how to guarantee home grown food is safe, I'll pay more attention to your ramblings.

[jvarga]

Plants don't suffer from E. coli infections because E. coli is a mammalian intestinal pathogen and plants lack a gi tract? This has nothing to do with essential oils and everything to do with molecular receptors.

Plants get infections, I'm not sure if you're aware of that or not. Plant pathogens don't generally cause a lot of trouble in people for the same reason that human pathogens don't cause a lot of trouble for the plants.

[jaundicedview]

"E. coli actually is fairly sensitive to radiation, while salmonella and listeria require more energy. While irradiation doesn't sterilize, the FDA ruled that food companies could use a dose proven to dramatically reduce levels of those germs, a dose somewhat lower than meat requires."

So if we believe the law of natural selection, irradiation will be selecting for radiation resistant germs, meaning this will be a short-lived temporary fix.

Here's another thought. Has anyone ever seen a porta-potty out in the field where vegetables or fruits are being harvested? How about a wash-up station? I've never seen that. Where do the field workers go to the bathroom and where do they wash up? Perhaps this could be addressed.

[AZWolfster]

And I suppose the FDA is also pretending that dragging their heels on the latest E. Coli outbreak wasn't just the excuse for what they wanted all along - to shove irradiated produce literally down Americans' throats. And now we'll see how long it is before they claim it's perfectly safe and there is no reason to label it.

[SneathLane]

Do you have any idea how dangerous the food supply was before the FDA started regulating it? Check the history of the food industry. Look for the company that used waste cadmium to line tin cans, or the history of milk in New York City - there are thousands of horror stories. The FDA is far from perfect, but you're a lot safer with the FDA around than your ancestors were without it.

If there is a conspiracy to get more irradiated food on the shelves, FDA's part in it is motivated by their desire to reduce illness in the population. That was also behind their conspiracy to require sell-by dates, and their conspiracy to force food manufacturers to list their ingredients. And their conspiracy to reduce food adulteration. And their conspiracy to get heavy metals out of the food supply.

They are not evil people out to get you. FDA civil servants are decent people who are trying to protect you.

[zizyphus]

Papayas are irradiated here in order to ship them out of the state. I have tried them, and they are no good compared to the unradiated ones. Weird texture, blah tasting. Also, the GMO papayas-no good, no flavor, weird texture. I look for the homegrown ones at the farmers market. Support your local small farmer- it will pay off in the long run.

Better yet, learn about permaculture and transform your whole yard into a sustainable food producing area. Now, everywhere I go here on the island, people are talking about growing their own produce, and the fun of sharing them with friends and neighbors. In Puna, a Sustainability Forum is slated for next month.

The Green Revolution will have to start with each and every homeowner. Stop using chemical pesticides and fertilizers, turn your land into an orchard or garden. Mulch, compost, biochar. Someday large manicured poisoned lawns will be like a billboard saying, "An idiot lives here".

[SneathLane]

It's always good to grow your own vegetables - but if you can't be bothered to do that, or you can't keep all the animals out of your garden, you'll get bacteria-ridden vegetables. Like humans have always eaten - the world is not a sterile place.

"locally grown" doesn't guarantee a vegetable's purity or healthiness. After all, E. coli is completely organic. A sick local farmer taking a dump in his field while he's out working can make a lot of you city folks ill, though. Don't think he's going to stop work and drive a few miles to find a toilet - farm workers don't waste their time like that.

So - irradiated food or occasional stomach and intestinal distress? If you eat raw vegetables, you have to pick one or the other.

Myself - I like cooked vegetables. No live bacteria, no viruses, no problem.

[CamJam]

What will the FDA do next?

Anyone remember how the FDA handled BPA?
http://www.ewg.org/reports/bpatimeline

[ssaz]

Would that be the Federal Department of Abdication?

It seems more appropriate since every responsibility to the american people has been abdicated to corporate america.

[JScott]

Fine but at least disclose it to the consumer. Then I'll know not to buy it, I'll support locally grown.

[mouselion]

A very good reason to support local (unradiated) food sources and grow your own. Price of arugula, anyone?