Zap Irradiated Food

Also, although boxes of irradiated meat arriving at schools will be labeled, labeling in the cafeteria and parental notification are not required. Instead, the USDA will only "encourage" schools using irradiated meat to let parents know.

Irradiation can kill harmful microorganisms, such as E. coli, in meat, but if meat processing operations were cleaned up, irradiation wouldn't be needed. Also, irradiation destroys vital nutrients in food and may produce harmful radiolytic byproducts.

The Situation in Maine: On September 10, 2003 Susan Gendron, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Education sent a memorandum to all superintendents of schools and private school administrators advising them that for Maine, irradiated beef is likely to be available during the 2004-2005 school year. The memorandum stated that the Department of Education, as well as the Departments of Human Services and Agriculture, supported the use of food irradiation and "have agreed that irradiated foods can provide a critical extra layer of food safety for our school children." Maine parents and students concerned about the introduction of irradiated beef to the Maine school lunch program should contact their local Board of Education, which has the option of directing that the irradiated beef not be purchased.

Citizen pressure has gotten the USDA to label boxes of irradiated meat and to move the start date for serving irradiated meat to January 2004, instead of this calendar year. The USDA still needs to be convinced to require notification to parents and students; and to stop efforts to promote irradiation, which benefits only the irradiation industry. And local school districts need know that parents don't want them purchasing and providing irradiated food to schoolchildren. A sample letter to the USDA appears below.

You can also copy a sample letter to send to your local school district urging avoidance of irradiated meat, and a letter to send to your U.S. representative and senators to spur them to reverse the provisions in the 2002 Farm Bill that enabled the USDA to purchase irradiated meats for the National School Lunch Program, at www.generationgreen.org/Action_Alert.htm. Also, you can download a kit from Public Citizen to help convince your local school committee to ban irradiated meat (www.citizen.org/cmep/foodsafety/food_irrad/schoollunch/articles.cfm?ID=10362).

Sample Letter Ann M. Veneman Secretary of Agriculture USDA 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W. Washington, DC 20250 E-mail: Send your message to agsec@usda.gov Dear Secretary Veneman: It is wrong to serve irradiated meat to students involved in the National School Lunch Program. Irradiation creates new chemicals in meat that have never been tested and may be harmful. Moreover, irradiation destroys vital nutrients. Don't our children already eat too much food that's lacking in nutritional value? I understand that you are obligated to make such meat available to schools under the policies set by the Farm Bill. However, I urge you to require signage in cafeterias notifying students and school staff when irradiated meat is being used and to mandate parental notification. Also, I implore you to cease efforts (such as the current pilot program in Minnesota) that actually create pro-irradiation promotional materials under the guise of being "educational." Sincerely, [Your Name] Sources: Generation Green, www.generationgreen.org/Action_Alert.htm; and Public Citizen, www.citizen.org/cmep/foodsafety/food_irrad/schoollunch/articles.cfm?ID=10362