Preservation of Food and feed using irradiation K R.pptx

1. K R MICRO NOTES 1

2.  Irradiation
 Basic Principle
 Mechanism and Process
 Types of Food
 Application
 Effectiveness and Benefits
 Safety & Concern
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3. INTRODUCTION
 Food irradiation is the process of exposing
food to a controlled source of ionizing
radiation for the purposes of reduction of
microbial load, destruction of pathogens,
extension of product shelf life, and/or
disinfestations of produce.
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4. Basic principle
 Irradiation is known as a cold process. It does
not significantly increase the temperature or
change the physical or sensory characteristics
of most foods.
 During irradiation, the energy waves affect
unwanted organisms but are not retained in
the food.
 Most irradiated food is processed by gamma
irradiation; however the usage of electron
beam and X-ray is becoming more popular.
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5. Two things are needed for
the irradiation process
 A source of radiant energy, and
 A way to confine that energy. For food
irradiation, the sources are radioisotopes
and machines that produce high-energy
beams.
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6. MECHANISM
 During irradiation, foods are exposed
briefly to a radiant energy source within a
shielded facility.
 There are three sources of radiation
approved for use on foods.
 Gamma Rays
 X-Rays
 Electron Beam
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7.  Gamma rays are emitted from radio-
active forms of the element cobalt 60.
 X-rays are produced by reflecting a high-
energy stream of electrons off a target
substance into food.
 Electron beam is similar to X-rays and is
a stream of high-energy electrons
propelled from an electron accelerator
into food.
MECHANISM
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8. THE PROCESS
 To kill bacteria in fruits and vegetables, the
food is loaded into large containers called
pallet carriers, which move through the plant
on monorail system.
 Fruits and vegetables are exposed to gamma
rays as they pass racks of cobalt 60. This kills
pests. For other foods, irradiation can extend
shelf life and kill bacteria, such as salmonella,
that can cause fatal diseases.
 Unused cobalt 60 is stored underground in a
water tank. The tank blocks radiation.
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9.  Fruits and vegetables complete the circuit in
30 to 60 minutes. They are then unloaded
and taken for processing.
Fig: Pallet Irradiator Plant Layout.
THE PROCESS
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10. Types of Food
 1. Bulbs, Root and Tubers
 2. Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
 3. Fish, Seafood
 4. Cereals, Nuts, Oil seeds, Pulses, Dried
Fruits
 5. Raw Poultry and Meat
 6. Dried Vegetables, Spices, Condiments, Dry
Herbs and Herbal Teas
 7. Dried Food of Animal Origin
 8. Miscellaneous Foods & Feeds
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11. Types of Food
Fig: Food Products treated by Irradiation.
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12. APPLICATIONS
 Prevention of Food borne Illness
 Food Preservation and Shelf life extension
 Control of Insects
 Delay of Sprouting and Ripening
 Sterilization and Insect disinfestations
 Quarantine control
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13. Effectiveness and Benefits
 Increasing shelf life of meats and fruits
and vegetables.
 Improving quality of fruits and vegetables
chemical treatments, especially
 Providing a suitable alternative to
for
decontamination of fruits and vegetables
 Providing economic savings due to
reduced incidence of illness.
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14. Safety & Concern
 Food irradiation can be used without posing a
human health hazard and that furthermore, its
use will improve the microbial safety of the food
supply.
 Irradiation has been proven beneficial for not
only controlling pathogens, but also increasing
shelf life and maintaining food quality.
 Irradiation to ensure food safety is to be
implemented as part of an overall HACCP plan
and is not meant to replace existing control
measures.
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15. RADURA
 The Radura is the international symbol
indicating the statement “treated with
radiation” or “treated by irradiation”.
 The Radura is usually
green and resembles a
plant in circle.
 The top half of the circle
is dashed. Graphical
details and colors vary
between countries.
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16. USAGE
 The symbol Radura was originally used as
a symbol of quality for food processed by
ionizing radiation.
 The Dutch pilot plant used the logo as an
identification of irradiated products and as
a promotion tool for a high quality product
with extended shelf life.
 Since then application of the logo on the
product or a clearly visible logo near
treated bulk product was even demanded.
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17. THANK YOU
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