Search results for "Food irradiation"
showing 10 items of 20 documents
Gamma Irradiation and Fermentation
2016
This chapter discusses the applications of gamma irradiation technology for food safety, its nutritional implications, and its involvement in fermentation processes. Gamma irradiation has become an alternative technology for food sterilization due to its nonthermal character, thus replacing the conventional heating processes. Several driving forces are propelling the need of γ-irradiation forward for food applications. Besides food preservation, γ-irradiation is taking place for novel applications, especially involving the enhancement of food fermentation processes, by directly irradiating the medium, or generating performant genetically modified strains.
Consumer interest in information regarding novel food technologies in Italy: The case of irradiated foods
2018
Recent food crises and uncertainty regarding food quality have pushed consumers towards a growing need to know more about the foods they purchase, including information related to both food quality and production. This paper identifies the main factors affecting consumer interest in receiving information on food irradiation technology. An online survey was used for research purposes and a total of 392 people, living in Italy, were questioned. Findings revealed that 89.2% of Italian consumers are interested in receiving information on the treatment of foods with ionizing radiation aimed at raising product safety. In particular, this interest was greater for respondents who reported a high se…
Evaluation of the original dose in irradiated dried fruit by EPR spectroscopy
2011
Abstract The electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) is one of the physical methods, recommended by the European Committee for Standardization, for the identification of irradiated food containing cellulose, such as dried fruit. In this work the applicability of EPR as identification method of irradiated pistachios, hazelnuts, peanuts, chestnuts, pumpkin seeds is evaluated; the time stability of the radiation induced signal is studied and the single aliquot additive dose method is used to evaluate the dose in the product.
Irradiated foods between concern and acceptance in the Italian market
2018
Consumers have always shown a marked concern for the novel technologies. The treatment of foods with ionizing radiation, not entirely new, has always been a major concern among consumers for the impact that the consumption of treated food could have on health. The aim of this paper is to investigate Italian consumer attitudes towards the irradiated food and in particular the perceived risk and the acceptability of these technology. A survey was carried out in Italy by administering an on-line questionnaire to a sample of 392 consumers. The results of the study highlight a low level of knowledge of food irradiation, often associated with nuclear radiation and doubts about the effect that the…
The identification of irradiated crustaceans and evaluation of the dose by thermoluminescence: Intercomparison between two methods for extracting min…
2010
Abstract The thermoluminescence (TL) is one of the physical methods recommended by the European Committee for Standardization, for the identification of irradiated food from which silicate minerals can be extracted. The efficacy of the method strongly depends on the quantity and purity of the extracted minerals, and therefore on the extraction procedure. In this work we applied the TL for the identification of crustacean Nephrops norvegicus irradiated at 0.5−1.5−3.0 kGy, comparing two different procedures for extracting minerals: by means of a density gradient or with acid hydrolysis. The identification of the irradiation treatment was always achieved with both procedures, without any false…
ISO 14470:2011 and EU legislative background on food irradiation technology: The Italian attitude
2014
Our work aim is to produce an overview of food irradiation technology at European Union level, with a focus on the Italian context, by specifying the legislative background, detection methods and labelling obligations. We highlight how consumers are too often misinformed about this technology and its benefits. For this purpose, a series of tools aimed at improving the amount of information have been proposed, allowing the consumer to make a free choice about whether or not to buy irradiated food based on the correct information received, independent from socio-economic factors. Finally, we show the common effort at EU and International level, represented by the ISO 14470:2011 quality standa…
Qualitative and quantitative thermoluminescence analysis on irradiated oregano
2007
Abstract Thermoluminescence (TL) dosimetry is one of the physical methods used for the identification of irradiated food, suitable for foods from which silicate minerals can be extracted. The aims of the present work were to apply the TL analysis for a qualitative identification of irradiated oregano, and to set up a quantitative procedure to estimate the original treatment dose on the sample. The experimental results show that the TL analysis allows to distinguish irradiated oregano even seven months after the treatment. The additive dose procedure gives a rough estimation of the treatment dose, but can be helpful when the TL ratio method is unsatisfactory.
Assessment of contamination of Salmonella spp. in imported black pepper and sesame seed and salmonella inactivation by gamma irradiation
2021
This study shows the frequency of seeds samples contaminated by Salmonella spp. collected randomly from local markets; on 30 black pepper sample no contaminated sample was found while Salmonella spp. was detected in 3 of 36 (8.3%) analyzed sesame samples; three different serotypes were identified: S. Montevideo, S. Stanleyville e S. Tilene. The efficacy of gamma irradiation to inactivate Salmonella Montevideo in black pepper and sesame irradiated between 1 and 5 kGy was evaluated. 3 kGy is sufficient to reduce of 3-4 log CFU/g; whereas 5 kGy have been need to reduce 5.5-6 log CFU/g for samples of black pepper and sesame. No statistically significant differences were found between black pepp…
Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric and microbiological analyses on irradiated chiken
2007
Ionizing radiation is widely used as treatment technique for food preservation. It involves among others reduction of microbial contamination, disinfestations, sprout inhibition and extension of shelf life of food. However, the commercialization of irradiated food requires the availability of reliable methods to identify irradiated foodstuffs. In this paper, we present results on the application to irradiated chicken of this method, based on the detection, in muscle and skin samples, of the peaks of ions 98 Da and 112 Da, in a ratio approximately 4:1, typical of radiation induced 2-dodecylcyclobutanones (2-DCB). Aim of the work was also to study the time stability of the measured parameters…
Detection of Irradiated Food and Evaluation of the Given Dose by Electron Spin Resonance, Thermoluminescence, and Gas Chromatographic/Mass Spectromet…
2018
Abstract The treatment of food with ionizing radiation, at doses lower than 10 kGy, is a preservation technology, which can be used to reduce food spoilage due to microorganisms and to decrease insect infestation, enhancing, in the same time, the hygienic quality, extending the shelf life of food itself. In order to increase the general consumer acceptance and accordingly to facilitate the commercialization and trade of irradiated food, the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) validated reliable analytical techniques to identify irradiated foodstuffs for legal control purposes, distinguished in Chemical, Physical, and Microbiological ones, depending on the characteristics of marker …