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Irradiated pet food ingredients; at no extra charge. Federal regulations will soon allow irradiation to destroy nutritional content of pet food poultry ingredients. Despite the scientific fact that irradiation does NOT kill all bacteria, and despite the scientific fact that irradiation alters the nutritional content of food, the FDA is accepting the petition submitted by a food irradiation company and is changing the law.

Irradiated pet food ingredients; at no extra charge.  Federal regulations will soon allow irradiation to destroy nutritional content of pet food poultry ingredients.  Despite the scientific fact that irradiation does NOT kill all bacteria, and despite the scientific fact that irradiation alters the nutritional content of food, the FDA is accepting the petition submitted by a food irradiation company and is changing the law.

A petition filed with the FDA in February 2012 by “Sadex Corp.” has resulted in the FDA amending the regulations for irradiation of animal feed and pet food “to provide for the safe use of electron bean and x-ray sources for irradiation of poultry feed and poultry feed ingredients.”

(Corporations) Ask and You Shall Receive

Sadex Corporation is a Texas-based corporation operating an electron beam (“e-beam”) irradiation or “cold pasteurization” facility in Sioux City, Iowa asked FDA, and they received what they asked for…approval to begin irradiation of poultry feed and poultry pet food ingredients (such as chicken, chicken meal, and so on).

(Consumers) Forget About It

A similar petition filed by pet food consumers, submitted to FDA in July 2010 requested that FDA enforce federal food safety law with pet foods/treats.  This petition received a completely opposite response from FDA.  Almost 3 years later, this consumer petition continues to be ignored by FDA.  Instead of actually enforcing food safety law as it is written (which was addressed in our petition), the FDA continues to provide pet food manufacturers loopholes (known as Compliance Policies) to by-pass federal food safety law.

Fact:  Irradiation does NOT kill all bacteria.
From Duke University “Does irradiation destroy all bacteria, resulting in a sterile product?
No. Irradiation pasteurizes food by using energy, just as milk is pasteurized using heat. At the level used, most harmful bacteria will be destroyed. Afterwards, surviving bacteria could start to multiply if the food were mishandled; for example, stored at an improper temperature. The level of irradiation used also does not kill certain spoilage organisms.”

Fact:  Irradiation does destroy nutritional content of foods.
From OrganicConsumers.org “A study by Diehl, Hasselmann & Kilcast states the most vulnerable -carotene (provitamin A) and α-tocopherol vitamins to irradiation are  (vitamin E). When exposed to under 10 kilograys of ionizing radiation (the standard Canadian dosage), irradiated Manitoban wheat lost 18% more of its vitamin E content over just one day, as compared to the non irradiated variety. Oats, after being irradiated and stored for 6 months, had a 44% decrease in vitamin E as compared to the traditional variety. Irradiated potatoes after being stored for 6 months lost 50% more of their vitamin A content. Irradiated beef liver and powdered egg lost 22% and 18% of their vitamin A content over a 4-week period respectively (Diehl et al., 1991).” 

Fact:  Irradiation alters the chemical structure of foods, many in unknown ways.
Again from OrganicConsumers.org “There is a wide range of unique chemical changes that result when food is irradiated. These compounds are truly unique because they are never formed during other food processing techniques such as cooking and freezing. To illustrate, an article by George Tritsch, who has over 36 years of expertise in the field of cancer research at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, states that 30 mg of sucrose (table sugar) when irradiated will create 0.05 mg of formaldehyde, which is a carcinogen (2002).”

By the way, it is almost certain your pet food label will NOT bear the irradiation Radura symbol or provide any warning an ingredient in the pet food was treated with irradiation.

Thanks FDA, we pet food consumers can always depend on you to ignore anything consumer friendly; industry thanks you because you are certain to support everything they want.

 

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible

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27 Comments

27 Comments

  1. Maxine

    May 10, 2013 at 12:03 pm

    Wag N Train (Purina) China – Was irradiated. Didn’t help the treats from doing major damage to the animals that ate them.

    • Yvonne McGehee

      May 10, 2013 at 8:28 pm

      I didn’t know that, thanks for that information.

      • Maxine

        May 11, 2013 at 3:00 pm

        The bag says “Sterilized by Irradiation for Freshness & Health”

  2. Susan MERCER

    May 10, 2013 at 12:46 pm

    Every day that passes makes me thankful my pets are eating a species appropriate raw food diet that I prepare myself. Sure, it is a lot easier to shake a bunch of kibble into a bowl, but looking into those bright eyes and stroking the soft healthy coats of my dogs and cats reaffirms daily that this is the right choice. Thank you Susan for keeping this information in front of us.

    • jb

      May 11, 2013 at 9:23 pm

      YEP! I worry because I can only afford conventional grocery fare but, I KNOW it is better than processed, unknown sourced commercial pet food.

  3. Cheryle

    May 10, 2013 at 1:00 pm

    My husband & I are truck owners who take our pets with us on the truck. Sometimes we are required to move low level radioactive materials. The amazing thing that relates to this story is that when we load or unload at these type facilities, the dogs are not allowed in. We have been told that the reason is that animals are much more sensitive to radioactive materials than humans & the facility does not want the liability of the animals getting sick. Now their food is going to be irradiated? This could be a very bad thing!

  4. joan

    May 10, 2013 at 1:06 pm

    I don’t get it. Are the FDA and/or its employees getting kick backs? Why would they allow such crap? I find it hard to think they are all just stupid.

  5. Kelley

    May 10, 2013 at 1:36 pm

    Question.
    .
    Do you think we need to ask about irradiation in the Pledge to Quality as to whether or anot any ingredients have been (or will be) irradiated? If so, will the companies declare it on the label so consumers can make an informed choice? I realize no company is required to, and sub-par companies will not. Just asking about the companies who are already proud of their highest quality assurance standards!
    .
    Would it be good to ask existing responders and good to follow up with non-responders? Afterall the Pledge was sent out over a YEAR AGO in April 2012. And … what is up with Champion Foods anyway? Promises, promises and no Pledge. Just curious, being naturally nosey anyway!
    .
    Please let me know if I can help in anyway!

    • Amee Rech

      May 20, 2013 at 3:50 pm

      Good point, Kelley! Of course, it wasn’t necessary until the LAW WAS CHANGED to accommodate a provider of the service (?!?!).

  6. Christine

    May 10, 2013 at 1:37 pm

    To be clear – poultry ingredients destined for pet foods will all be irradiated, or will individual pet food companies still be able to choose non-irradiated meats?

  7. Heidi

    May 10, 2013 at 1:39 pm

    Are you going to file a protest with the FDA before June 10? I mean, not that it would do any good…..they don’t listen anyway.

  8. mikken

    May 10, 2013 at 1:54 pm

    After the Orijen debacle in AU? Really?

    • Vicky

      May 10, 2013 at 3:51 pm

      What was the Orijen debacle?

  9. Gene

    May 10, 2013 at 3:18 pm

    It seems they always take something good and destroy it. The irradition company just want’s to sell their equiptment to make money. They don’t care whom or what they hurt.

  10. Robin

    May 11, 2013 at 12:25 pm

    Didn’t they have problems in Australia with cat food that was irradiated and resulted in more than 40 cats being euthanized due to illness? Some have questioned if one of the problems with Chinese dog treats is they irradiated them.

    According to Winkipedia:”The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved the use of low-level irradiation as an alternative treatment to pesticides for fruits and vegetables that are considered hosts to a number of insect pests, including fruit flies and seed weevils; the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared among a number of other applications the treatment of hamburger patties to eliminate the residual risk of a contamination by a virulent E. coli.

    Under bilateral agreements that allows less-developed countries to earn income through food exports agreements are made to allow them to irradiate fruits and vegetables at low doses to kill insects, so that the food can avoid quarantine.”

    It’s already here.

  11. Mrs Donna Chambers

    May 11, 2013 at 6:10 pm

    I posted this on our facebook site, and received the following comment from Steve Mushynsky: “This article states that pet food irradiation by electron beam or x-ray has been ok’d by the fda and then goes on to state that ‘ionizing radiation’ has deleterious effects on food.
    Neither electron beam nor x-ray is ‘ionizing radiation’ [alpha particles from decay of a radioactive isotope source].
    the comparisons in this article are invalid and the validity of sources quoted are questionable as well.
    I, for one, will be glad to know that pet food manufacturers are doing their best to reduce the bacteria present in my pets’ food as much as possible.”

    I would be interested in hearing some comment about this.

    • dmiller

      May 13, 2013 at 4:34 pm

      I am fairly certain that the FDA cannot be replied on completely for anything, even our own health. In any case, the FDA has approved a process that other studies have questioned in term of ability to achieve stated goals and to leave the food nutritionally intact. The Australian experience is that irradiated food is bad for cats. Anyone ignoring that does so at the risk of their cat’s health, if not life.

      Bottom line, consumer’s have the right to know so they can make their own choices.

    • Ruth

      May 16, 2013 at 10:36 am

      I will agree that the study sited above about the nutritional content of irradiated foods was done with “ionizing radiation”, but I can’t find any studies done with Xrays or Electron Beam to confirm that they DON’T affect the nutritional content……

      And frankly I don’t want the GOOD bacteria killed, thank you very much. THATS usefull bacteria, it does things, like, result in that “bad” smell when something starts go off!

    • wol

      May 21, 2013 at 8:47 am

      Actually Ebeams & xrays are also forms of ionizing radition.

      “There are three
      types of ionizing radiation that can
      potentially be used in food irradiation:
      electron beams (machine generated),
      X-rays – (machine generated), and
      gamma rays (occur naturally from
      radioactive decay of Cesium 137 or
      Cobalt 60). Cobalt-60 is most
      commonly used for food irradiation,
      though electron beam is finding
      increasing application.”
      http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/foodsci/ext/pubs/irradiation.pdf

      E-beam radiation is a form of ionizing energy that is generally characterized
      by its low penetration and high dosage rates. The beam, a concentrated,
      highly charged stream of electrons, is generated by the acceleration and
      conversion of electricity. The electrons are generated by equipment referred
      to as accelerators which are capable of producing beams that are either pulsed
      or continuous.
      As the product/material being sterilized passes beneath or in front
      of the electron beam, energy from the electrons is absorbed. This absorption
      of energy alters various chemical and biological bonds within the product/
      material. The energy that is absorbed is referred to as the “absorbed dose.”
      It is this absorption of energy –or “dose delivery”–that destroys the
      reproductive cells of microorganisms by destroying their DNA chains.
      E-beam radiation is similar to gamma processing in that, upon contact with
      the exposed product, electrons alter various chemical and molecular bonds,
      including the reproductive cells of microorganisms.
      http://www.sterigenics.com/services/medical_sterilization/contract_sterilization/electron_beam_radiation/sterilization_alternatives__electron_beam_radiation.pdf

  12. Pingback: Yet another reason to feed raw…. | Dogs in the Raw

  13. lynn

    January 12, 2014 at 6:46 pm

    did champion only do the irradiation on cat food or both cat and dog food? I have used their freeze dried treats … now I am scared to death anyone know?

    • Susan Thixton

      January 13, 2014 at 8:57 am

      They irradiated product going into Australia – this was I believe back in 2008. Australian laws at the time required foods not cooked at a certain temperature to be treated with irradiation – so both dog and cat foods would have been irradiated. Those laws have since been changed (I believe). The best for you would be to contact Champion Pet Food directly and ask them about your concerns. Never hesitate to ask a manufacturer your questions. How they respond or if they respond is good information as well.

  14. Peter

    April 21, 2014 at 9:23 pm

    If the products we will buy will not bear the “radura” symbol, because they are not required to… by what means is this exception?

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