Food safety and irradiation related sanitary and phytosanitary approaches - Chinese perspective

Abstract

Food safety is a crucial element in both domestic production to consumption and international trade. Food safety policies determine food quality maintenance and possible ways to reduce/eliminate post-harvest losses in countries with larger population growth. In this context, food irradiation ensures the basis for public perception and awareness on the domestic market for food safety and provides innovative solutions for sanitary and phytosanitary measures. In the Asia Pacific Region, China has initiated projects on radiation processing. Various objectives, including extension of self-life, sanitary and phytosanitary irradiation came into practice to fulfill the conventional food needs of large populations and to avoid of post-harvest losses. The overall objective of this paper was to summarize the China's regulatory efforts are associated with food safety and irradiation for sanitary and phytosanitary purposes. Moreover, we also wanted to look in particular detail at irradiation technology implementation which are irradiation facilities including specific facilities for phytosanitary irradiation (PI) looking at details in China. Finally, we tried to summarize irradiation capability growth, irradiated food volumes and estimations by using different sources as a brief review. We note that regulations in China for the food safety and solution of sanitary, phytosanitary and shelf life problems through the use of irradiation technology need more effort for implementation and national and international consumer attitudes. China needs to strengthen the compliance of food processors in all stages with domestic and international regulations & requirements. Finally, current progress in food safety policy and installed irradiation units for commercialization of the food irradiation process show that China will be most speculated country in the very near future. Although it is not possible to predict future scenarios for irradiation unit installation developments are predicting even steeper increases in numbers of e beams compared to gamma radiation facilities.