USDA Announces Rules Covering
Irradiation Of Meat Products

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman told the National Cattlemen's Beef Association convention here Friday that a new USDA rule would allow the irradiation of raw meat and raw meat products.

``We need to do all we can to give consumers confidence we have the safest food supply in the world, which it is,'' he said.

The proposed rule would permit but not require irradiation for refrigerated or frozen uncooked meat, and some meat products.

The industry welcomed the announcement, saying it will make meat safer.

During irradiation, low-level doses of gamma rays or electron beam irradiation are administered to kill bacteria.

Irradiation is the only known method to eliminate a potentially deadly strain of E. coli in raw meat. The technology can also significantly reduce levels of listeria, salmonella and campylobacter bacteria.

Recently, contamination at a meat processing plant in Michigan was linked to 11 deaths, and listeria was the suspected culprit.

The USDA rule on irradiation will be published in the Federal Register within 10 days.

It will take more than two months before the rule can go into effect. After it is published, a USDA spokesman said, there is a 60-day period for public comment before the rule can be final.

Charles P. Schroeder, head of the NCBA, said: ``It is not often that industry eagerly awaits new government regulations and guidelines, but the use of this technology in the beef industry will benefit both beef producers and consumers'' by producing safer beef.

Brian Sansoni, a spokesman for the Grocery Manufacturers of America, added: ``In the simplest of terms, food irradiation will save lives.''

It remains to be seen whether meatpackers will make widespread use of the technique.

``We see irradiation as another potential tool for enhancing food safety. Ultimately, it will be up to the consumer to determine whether it's an acceptable practice,'' said Gary Mickelson, spokesman for meatpacking giant IBP Inc. of Dakota, Neb. ``First we need to see what the rules are. After that, we may test-market some ground beef.''

Irradiation has been used for years on limited amounts of produce, spices, poultry and other foods. On their recent shuttle mission, John Glenn and his fellow astronauts ate irradiated food. In Mexico, where refrigeration is limited and unreliable, irradiation has long been used to protect milk, allowing it to be stored and sold at room temperature.

Last year, the Food and Drug Administration approved the process for red meat.

USDA spokesman Andy Solomon said meatpackers are currently prohibited from using the technology on red meat. The new rule will give USDA the regulatory authority over use of irradiation, he said.

None of the major food companies has stepped forward to market irradiated products. Only a few small retailers offer irradiated foods.

``It's like pasteurization of milk,'' said rancher Wallace Schulthes, who raises cattle in Utah. ``At one time, people were concerned it would be bad for them. Look at the benefits of that.''

The process is not without its critics, chiefly anti-nuclear activists and some fringe "consumer" groups. Because the news media subjects their scare stories to little or no scientific skepticism, many consumers are unsure how to evaluate the process.

``I'll let someone else try it first before I buy it,'' said Annie Miller as she loaded groceries into her car outside a supermarket in Charlotte on Friday.

Her sister, Trisha Ekechukwu, also expressed reservations about buying irradiated red meat.

``Some people can eat or drink anything and they won't get sick,'' she said. ``I'd want to make sure it's OK before I eat it.''