Split proposal hopes to resolve irradiation issue

Date: 16/11/1995

By Fiona McHugh

THE European Commission is considering a change of policy aimed at breathing life into a moribund proposal on the irradiation of foodstuffs.

After years of talks in the Council of Ministers, member states' views on irradiation, a process used to kill bacteria and prevent food from rotting, remain unreconciled.

While they broadly agree on common rules governing irradiation processes, the EU's 15 members have been unable to decide which foods should be allowed to undergo the process.

Germany, the Nordic countries and Luxembourg - where irradiation is effectively banned - want the process to be limited to a small number of foods, such as spices and herbs.

“It is a question of philosophy. We want the irradiation of foodstuffs banned except perhaps for some small items like spices. We don't want any basic food like meat, fish, poultry, milk or vegetables included,” explained a German diplomat.

But France, Belgium and the UK, where irradiation laws are much more relaxed, take a more liberal approach and are insisting on a much longer list.

Those in favour of the process argue that, in many cases, irradiation is the only sure method of eliminating bacteria detrimental to consumers' health from food.

“The process is safe as long as certain criteria are fulfilled. It is a question of public acceptance of the method. Many people believe that if food has been irradiated, then it is radioactive. That is, quite simply, wrong,” said one official. But their opponents disagree, arguing the process may damage consumers' health and should be limited, if not banned.

To break the deadlock, the Commission is considering withdrawing the current directive and proposing two separate directives, one laying down rules for the process and the other establishing which foods may be irradiated, according to senior EU officials.

“That would allow member states to at least agree on common procedural rules before they try to tackle the delicate issue of which products should be irradiated,” explained one official.

But even if the Commission does split its current proposal in two, many doubt either of the resulting proposals will slip through the decision-making processes painlessly.

One diplomat points out that agreement has not yet been reached on the question of labelling. Current EU law says that consumers must be alerted on product labels to the fact that foods have been irradiated.

Member states are currently considering whether or not consumers should be alerted to the use of irradiated ingredients in food products. But they have not yet reached agreement on the issue.

“We are still trying to work out whether or not consumers should be told if irradiated pepper has been used in a frozen pizza or in salami, for instance. And I do not see us agreeing on that point in the near future,” said the diplomat.

“I am sure it will take years to arrive at an agreement on any aspect of this proposal.”