of how to create a problem and then use the same recipe to devise the solution instead of examining the root causes of the problem. At best irradiated foods are devoid of proper nutrients at worse they are cancerous. But whatever go for it.
We are so lost. Americans in particular are so utterly divorced from the source of their food and haven't any idea of where the food comes from let alone the agricultural techniques used to bring that food to their table.
The Technological Fix=the idea that all problems (even social problems) have technological solutions
for example, if automobiles cause unacceptable pollution, add more technology to the automobile to reduce the pollution (instead of substitution public transportation).
Do we solve a problem like water shortages by persuading people not to water their lawns or not have lawns or by increasingly expensive technological systems to bring water from someplace else? (Techno-Utopia we seek may be mere illusion)
Henry Ford: "We shall solve the city problems by leaving the city."
"Americans in particular have often seen technological progress as the surest basis for progress in general, and have tended to believe that technological solutions to problems are less painful than solutions that require political or social changes." (Rudi Volti, Society and Technological Change, 3rd edition, p. 16)
Irradiated fruits and vegetables benefit the packer and grocer, not the farmer or consumer. The consumer receives an inferior product that appears fresh, but has depleted vitamins and enzymes.
Gamma rays with specific energies normally come from the spontaneous disintegration of radionuclides. Naturally occurring and man-made radionuclides, also called radioactive isotopes or radioisotopes, are unstable, and emit radiation as they spontaneously disintegrate, or decay, to a stable state. The radionuclide used almost always for the irradiation of food by gamma rays is cobalt-60. It is produced by neutron bombardment in a nuclear reactor of the metal cobalt-59, then doubly encapsulated in stainless steel “pencils” to prevent any leakage during its use in a radiation plant. Cobalt-60 has a half-life of 5.3 years. This technology has been used routinely for more than thirty years to sterilize medical, dental and household products, and it is also used for radiation treatment of cancer. Radioactive substances emit gamma rays all the time. When not in use, the gamma ray “source” is stored in a pool of water which absorbs the radiation harmlessly and completely. To irradiate food or some other product, the source is pulled out of the water into a chamber with massive concrete walls that keep any rays from escaping. Medical products or foods to be irradiated are brought into the chamber, and are exposed to the rays for a defined period of time. After it is used, the source is returned to the water tank.
Only certain radiation sources can be used in food irradiation. These are the radionuclides cobalt-60 or cesium-137 (used very rarely); X-ray machines having a maximum energy of five million electron volts (MeV); or electron machines having a maximum energy of 10 MeV. Energies from these radiation sources are too low to induce radioactivity in any material, including food.
Radiation dose is the quantity of radiation energy absorbed by the food as it passes through the radiation field during processing. It is measured in Gray (Gy) or in rad (1 Gy = 100 rads). International health and safety authorities have endorsed the safety of irradiation for all foods up to a dose level of 10,000 Gy (10 kGy).
http://uw-food-irradiation.engr.wisc.edu/Process.html How Irradiation Works
Food is irradiated using radioactive gamma ray sources, usually radioactive cobalt-60 or .cesium-137, or high-energy electron beams. After packaging and being put into large metal boxes, the foods are placed on conveyor belts that move past the radiation sources. The materials are hit with the equivalent of 30 million X-rays, (according to the Spring 1998 Food & Water journal). The industry
now uses cobalt-60 supplied by the Canadian company Nordion International, Inc. But the only isotope available in sufficient quantities for large-scale irradiation is cesium-137. When not in use the cobalt or cesium is lowered into cooling ponds.
In the process, which takes about 20 to 30 minutes, the gamma radiation passes through the food, killing all bacteria (helpful as well as harmful) and slowing decay but not leaving the food radioactive.
Irradiators are used on the meats at the end of the production line, after it is already sealed in packages. This is particularly important in ground beef, where bacteria can easily get beneath the surface during grinding. However the industry is lobbying for approval of irradiating unpackaged meats as well.
Cesium-137 is radioactive waste left in huge quantities from nuclear weapons production at Hanford in Washington State and Savannah River, South Carolina. A by-product of nuclear reactor operation, cesium-137 is an extremely hazardous isotope that is deadly for 600 years. It is watersoluble, which makes it terribly dangerous in the event of an accident. As radioactive waste, it is extremely expensive to store and keep out of the biosphere.
http://www.mindfully.org/Food/Irradiated-Food-Nuc-Weapon.htmCollaborators in the food irradiation field, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, among others, tell us that food irradiation is just another way of preserving food to make it safe and wholesome - like pasteurisation, canning or freezing.Nothing could be further from the truth.You can pasteurise milk on your kitchen stove using a saucepan; heating, canning or freezing do result in some loss of nutrients, but cannot be compared to irradiation.
Exposure of food to specified Standards of irradiation smashes apart its chemical bonds, sending electrons flying. Scientific studies have shown the following results:
Increased chromosomal damage in animals and human; Increased frequency of cell mutations; Formation of mutant bacteria;
Increased frequency of tumours, reduced survival rate, and other health problems in animals; Increased carcinogens and other toxins in food, such as: Benzene, Formaldehyde, Octane, Butane, and Methyl Propane. (Benzene and formaldehyde are classified carcinogens); Formation of new and potentially dangerous compounds in foods called Unique Radiolytic Products, which have yet to be enumerated and identified. The higher the dose of radiation, the greater the number of U.R.P.s formed. One of these, 2-DCB, has recently been proven to cause cellular and genetic damage in human and rat cells; and FI causes the formation of free radicals.
Vitamin content is reduced by up to 96% depending upon the food item and other factors. Vitamins affected are A, B, C, E and K. Also, amino acids and polyunsaturated fats can be depleted. *
http://foodirradiationinfo.org/faq.html
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