PMA Supports Disclosure on Irradiated Produce

NEWARK, Del. — The Produce Marketing Association here this week said that irradiated produce should be clearly labeled as such. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has proposed that irradiation labeling would only be needed when the sterilization process causes a “material change” in a food. In a release this week, PMA said that it believes the technology, which uses radiation to eliminate pathogens such as E. Coli, is safe and useful. However, “we believe consumers should know whether a food has been irradiated, and they should have a choice of irradiated and non-irradiated produce,” Kathy Means, PMA’s vice president of government relations/public affairs, explained in the release. “Our concern is that by changing the labeling requirements from “irradiated” to “cold pasteurized” or some other phrase may only confuse the public and could even be perceived as misleading.”

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