Irradiation Is Dangerous—To Microbes, Anyway

The USA Today headline reads: “FDA to allow food producers to irradiate spinach, lettuce.” And actually the article itself is straightforward and factual, something not often seen in consumer press. But if you want some interesting reading, scroll down to the comments section for a cross section of public opinion ranging from the informed to the absurd. Apparently-germ infested poop is magically rendered sterile if it falls on your locally-grown, organic, hand-picked heirloom crops.

Listening to the evening news, it’s not hard to figure out where some of the absurd comes from. One FOX News commentator announced the decision by saying something to the effect that if you see your salad glowing, it’s due to this new FDA decision. There’s no dearth of misinformation out there.

I haven’t closely followed the recent irradiation saga. I know there are pros (a relatively quick, cheap, noninvasive way to kill all those nasty lurking microbes) and cons (some loss of quality, nutrition and perhaps some other odd chemical reactions promoted by the treatment). The most vocal opponent over the years seems to be Food and Water Watch, “a nonprofit consumer rights organization based in Washington, D.C. that challenges the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources.” (Interestingly, out of the staff of 30-plus rife with law and social science majors, only one person has a degree in the “hard” sciences—biology—unless environmental science counts.)

Since I’m not an irradiation expert, at this point I’m inclined to believe the statement sent out today by the GMA, “In addition to the FDA, the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Medical Association all agree that more than 50 years of research demonstrate that, at approved doses, low-dose food irradiation presents no health risk.”

I understand there may be legitimate concerns for public health anytime we undertake a large-scale feeding study where we all become the lab rats. And it’s always possible that the cumulative effect of ingesting some radiation-generated molecules might somehow add to the cumulative effect of the millions of other natural and synthetic molecules we ingest and/or breathe, and result in some significant—or insignificant—potential health effect. However, given the current system of food production, preparation and consumption, if irradiation works, why not give it a try? Sure there’s some potential risk, but on the other side, the CDC says “Foodborne diseases cause an estimated 76 million illnesses and 5,000 deaths in the United States each year.” Given that, I’m not sure why it’s such a bad idea that we try to kill the microbes before they kill us.

 —Lynn A. Kuntz