An investigation by the BBC has found evidence that irradiated food is on sale in leading British supermarkets and health food stores, breaking UK and European laws.
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Investigators for the broadcaster purchased twenty-eight food products, bought at random from retailers in London and Scotland, and subjected them to irradiation tests at the laboratories of the Scottish Universities Research and Reactor Center, in East Kilbride.
The tests involved screening the food to measure the amount of light emitted when exposed to infrared radiation. Researchers found that four of the foods registered positive. These samples were double-checked using another recognised test method and also revealed a positive result.
The foods that gained a positive result included a Realeat vegeburger mix with no artificial additives bought in Holland and Barrett, a Sharwoods mild curry powder, a Fiddes Payne Spice It Up, and some seasonings in a Sainsbury’s French herb roule cheese.
Dr David Sanderson, who tested the foods in the survey, said one or more ingredients within each product had been irradiated.
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By GlobalData“Four samples out of 28 is a rather higher proportion than one would expect,” he said. “The worry is that if irradiated foods aren’t labelled throughout the supply chain, the manufacturer or retailer might not be able to trace ingredients back in the event of a product recall.”
Holland and Barret have removed the Realeat item off their shelves, while Sainsbury’s said it is reserving judgement until after it has carried out its own tests.
Food irradiation is a safe way of killing harmful bugs, such as E. coli, and extending shelf life. However, the majority of consumers in Europe are not ready to accept it. At the moment only herbs and spices by law are allowed to be irradiated and must be labelled as such.
A Food Standards Agency spokeswoman said it was unacceptable to mislead consumers with no labels or inaccurate ones. It plans to conduct a nationwide investigation of its own into the irradiation of food.
