Spinach and Lettuce Irradiation Spark Safety Debate

As you might have heard, the Food and Drug Administration has given the green light to lettuce and spinach irradiation to ward off e-coli bacteria and shorten the cases of food poisoning.

What is with irradiation, you wonder? Well, it is a practice that has existed as far back as1985, when the FDA approved it for use in treating trichinosis on pork. Poultry was approved in May of 1990, and its use in fresh and frozen red meat, pork and lamb was approved in 1997 December to ward off E-coli and Salmonella. It is something new as far as leafy greens such as spinach and lettuce are concerned.

Why do people object to this FDA measure, which apparently would help eradicate or at least cut down on the millions of reported cases of e-coli and other food related bacteria, which claim about 5,000 American lives annually and thousands more hospitalized?

The devil is in the details. Yes, zapping vegetables such as spinach and lettuce could cut down on bacteria lurking on the leaves and even give longer shelf life to the vegetables. However, opponents of irradiation, namely Wenonah Hauter of Food and Water Watch contests that this will give food producers blank checks to continue with their "fast processing lines and dirty conditions at plants" rather than finding ways to eradicate this problem. She sees irradiation as ineffective due to the fact that for one, not all the bacteria are killed by the zapping process and two, it will disguise the dirty conditions at processing plants and elevate careless handling of these produces.

Supporters of this process, which include some grocers, contest that it reduces the likelihood for the great many outbreaks that have recently been linked to spinach and lettuce contamination.

In any case, the FDA has spoken, and food growers and grocers are happy to implement irradiation. Some contend though that it will be tough to accomplish the eradication of the e-coli bacteria, since some plants that are indeed filthy may not do a great job with the quality before the zapping, and no one is certain what might result from the time the greens leave the supermarket to the time it hits our fridge. In other words, what good is irradiated spinach if the very plant where it was packed is filthy and prone to poisonous bacteria? Maybe it is time you start growing your own spinach and lettuce too, just like tomatoes!

Source:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2008/08/fda_irradiation.html