Food Standards Agency survey finds illegally irradiated foods

A Food Standards Agency survey published on 6 June has revealed that a wide range of dietary supplements sold in the UK have been irradiated in breach of food regulations. The survey to detect irradiated foods sampled 543 different products including herbs, spices, dietary supplements, prawns and shrimps. In the UK, only correctly labelled irradiated herbs and spices are permitted. Irradiation is used to kill bacteria that may be present in food. The survey, the first conducted by the Agency to include dietary supplements, found that 58 (42% of the sample) were being sold illegally. The supplements sampled were: alfalfa, Aloe vera, cat’s claw, devil’s claw, garlic, ginger, Ginkgo biloba, ginseng, green tea, guarana, kava kava, saw palmetto, milk thistle and turmeric. There were positive results for irradiation in all product types except green tea.

http://www.food.gov.uk/news/pressreleases/irradiated-food-pr