Washington - Special food labels are not necessary to tell consumers when ground beef and other red meats are treated with irradiation to kill illness-causing bacteria, a food industry group said on Tuesday.
The labeling issue is emerging as a major battle between consumer groups and the food industry, as federal regulators develop a policy for the handling and marketing of irradiated red meat.
Consumer groups insist that labels must inform grocery shoppers if meat has been treated with tiny amounts of gamma rays or X-rays to kill bacteria.
But the food industry, while supporting irradiation, is concerned that consumers may be scared away from buying meat that is labeled as "irradiated" because of vague connotations to the nuclear industry.
"We view irradiation as a process or preservation technique, not as a food additive that must appear on the label," said Rhona Applebaum, executive vice president of the National Food Processors Assn. "Let the marketplace decide what labeling is necessary."
Applebaum, who made her remarks at a food policy conference, said the word irradiation was a "barrier to consumer acceptance" of a process that can kill dangerous pathogens.
Last December, a few weeks after the record recall of 25 million pounds of hamburger patties linked to E. coli contamination, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of irradiation on beef, pork and lamb.
Under the federal government's complicated jurisdiction over food issues, the U.S. Agriculture Department has promised to issue rules this summer outlining how meat packing plants can use irradiation, and how they must label their products.
The issues are crucial because of the meat industry's hesitation to invest in irradiation equipment unless it believes consumers will be willing to buy the product.
Irradiation was approved for use on U.S. poultry in 1992 but it has not been widely adopted because of the cost and consumer concerns. But irradiation is a common practice among other food manufacturers to preserve spices and some fruits and vegetables.
"Will the public ever endorse this? I can't tell you that -- I don't know," Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said at the conference earlier this week, referring to red meat irradiation. "Irradiation has a place in the food safety scheme but I do not think it is a silver bullet."
Some 50 members of consumer organizations, industry groups, government and academia met last month to talk about ways of overcoming consumer concerns about irradiation. A 1997 industry poll showed that one third of U.S. consumers were reluctant to buy irradiated food.
Research from consumer focus groups in Los Angeles, Dallas and New York showed that grocery shoppers are willing to try irradiated foods but they want them identified as such, said Dave Schmidt, vice president of the International Food Information Council.
"Awareness and understanding of food irradiation was much higher than we expected," Schmidt said. "The vast majority said they were willing to try irradiated foods but they better taste good or they won't buy it again."
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