Food Irradiation

Organic certification guarantees that food has not been irradiated. Radiation above visible light is classified as ionizing radiation. No long-term safety studies confirm that food irradiation poses no risk to human health. Food irradiation is marketed to consumers as 'cold pasteurization' or 'electronic pasteurization.' Irradiated food is exposed to ionizing radiation equivalent to roughly half a billion X-rays. Ionizing radiation can remove electrons from DNA or nearby water molecules in a cell nucleus. Electron removal can create free radicals that damage DNA. The article identifies this DNA-damaging mechanism as the reason radioactive-material exposures are dangerous to health. Irradiation kills all microorganisms including beneficial ones and results in biologically dead food.