We would like to invite you to participate in our 2009 food irradiation survey.

This survey is being conducted in order to provide information to the Australia public on the use of food irradiation in order to enable consumers to choose products that have not been irradiated should they so choose.

Food irradiation in Australia is the process of exposing foods to gamma radiation from a nuclear source for the purpose of sterilization.  In Australia teas, herbal supplements and seven tropical fruits have been approved for irradiation.  In practice irradiation has primarily been used to treat imported foods that do not meet hygiene standards, although several shipments of mangoes exported to New Zealand have been so far trialed.  Despite ten years since the approval of food irradiation, the process has not achieved popularity.  Consumers do not want irradiated food.

In 2006 Food Irradiation Watch surveyed food producers on their awareness and attitudes to the process of irradiation.  We produced the popular "Irradiation Free Food Guide": a consumer guide listing hundreds of food producers who have a policy of avoiding irradiation as a process.

Please take the opportunity to make your customers aware of your company's stance against food irradiation by writing an irradiation-free policy.  Please see the attached letter for some examples of policies we have received. All companies with irradiation-free policies will appear in our guide and on our website listing in the green category with our sincere gratitude. 

You can view the current guide and find out more information about irradiation and it's problems by visiting our website at www.foodirradiationwatch.org

Please email or post your policy to us by August 8, 2009.