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Continued from page 24 10. The brochure, "Catching the Wave", published on the IAEA website www.iaea.org, is an outstand- ing example of the type of public relations (propa- ganda) campaign which will target consumers over the next few years. 11. See www.who.org for the full text of the statement. 12. Bullerman et al., "Use of Gamma Irradiation to Prevent Aflatoxin Production in Bread", Journal of Food Science 1973:1238. 13. Webb and Lang, op. cit. 14. Josephson, Edward S. and Peterson, Martin S. (eds), Preservation of Food by Ionizing Radiation, CRC Press, Florida, USA, 3 volumes (vol. 1, 1982; vols 2 & 3, 1983). 15. Electron beam technology was initially devel- oped as part of the US Strategic Defense Initiative, popularly known as "Star Wars". After the initiative lost funding, scientists continued to develop acceler- ator technologies and devise new uses for them. 16. US Food and Drug Administration Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, "Kinetics of microbal inactivation for alternative food processing technologies — pulsed X-rays", June 2, 2000, www.mv.cfsan.fda.gov/~comm/itf-xray.html. 17. International Atomic Energy Agency, "Facts About Food Irradiation", www.iaea.org. 18. Verbatim testimony, US Congressional Hearings into Food Irradiation, House Committee on Commerce and Energy, Sub-Committee on Health and Environment, June 19, 1987. For more details, see Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, "Potential Hazards of Food Irradiation", www.ccnr.org/food_irradiation.html. 19. Bhaskaram, C., "Effects of feeding irradiated wheat to malnourished children", American Journal of Clinical Nutrition February 1975; 28:130-135. 20. Polyploidy or endoreduplication is caused by a blocking of the last stage of a cell division. The chromosomes have reduplicated themselves, but the cell does not split into two parts, each with a normal set of chromosomes, so the result is one large cell with a double set of chromosomes. 21. See www.food-irradiation.com/you_asked.htm#. 22. Market Development for Irradiated Food in the Asia-Pacific. FAO/IAEA Coordinated Research Projects, www.iaea.or.at/programmes/nafa/d5/crp/ d6_2006.html. 23. Canadian regulations have remained unchanged since 1989, when food irradiation was reclassified as a process rather than an ingredient. Canadian clear- ances in effect today include: potatoes and onions for sprout inhibition; wheat, flour and whole wheat flour for insect de-infestation; and spices and dehy- drated seasonings for microbial reduction. See www foodincanada.com/Content/03-96/F7_Features. html. 24. European Parliament, Joint Text for a European Parliament and Council Directive concerning Foods and Food Ingredients Treated with Ionising Radiation, 27 January 1999, www.dainet.de/bfe/Bfe- Englisch/Information/Lebensmittel.htm. 25. Steritech's application can be downloaded from the ANZFA website, www.anzfa.gov.au. 26. See www.gmabrands.com/pubpolicy/ irradiation/index.cfm. 27. More than 170 companies throughout the world are irradiating food. The US irradiation companies listed by the Grocery Manufacturers Association are: Accelerator Technology Corporation; Alpha Omega Technology, Inc.; APA Inc./Titan Corporation; Food Technology Service, Inc.; Iotron Technologies, Inc.; and Isomedix. 28. See www.ratical.com/radiation/inetSeries/ partialAccLs.html. 29. See www.sustainable-city.org/articles/ irradiat.htm. 30. Ashton, J. and Laura, R., The Perils of Progress: Health and Environment Hazards of Modern Technology and What You Can Do About Them, UNSW Press, Australia, 1998, p. 166. 31. Irradiation of food packaging materials is increasing, and this is an area in which there may be potential health risks from packaging-radiation inter- actions. 32. IAEA, "Facts About Food Irradiation", ibid. About the Author: Susan Bryce is an Australian journalist and author of more than 70 published research articles. Susan publishes the Australian Freedom & Survival Guide, which aims to undermine the pervading myths surrounding the corporate consumer culture, globalisation and the New World Order. AF&SG encourages public debate and questioning of issues which are fundamental to our future freedom and survival. These issues include genetic engineering, food irradiation and related issues, Big Brother and the international surveillance regime, corporate power and global governance, and self-sufficiency in the 21st century. Australian Freedom & Survival Guide is avail- able by subscription (6 issues per year, A$45.00, US$37.00, £25.00). Send cheque payable to Susan Bryce, POBox 66, Kenilworth, Qld 4574, Australia. For more details, visit website www.squirrel.com.au/~sbryce/. NEXUS - 81 Food Irradiation: The Global Agenda FEBRUARY — MARCH 2001