Radiation Technology to Enhance Food Quality and Ensure Food Safety in Syria

Food irradiation program in Syria has been going on since 1985. The major goal of this program is to investigate the effect of ionizing irradiation on improving storability and insuring safety and preserving the quality of food. The food irradiation research focuses on sprout inhibition of onions and tubers, insect disinfestations of seeds and nuts, shelf life extension of prepared meal of both plant and animal food for human nutrition, and decontamination of spices and medical herbs. The results of the food irradiation program in Syria indicate that food irradiation is feasible for sprout inhibition, shelf life extension, disinfestations, and decontamination of food products. Regulations for food irradiation in Syria were put in place in 1986 with a maximum allowable dose of 10 kGy. Syrian Atomic Energy Commission (SAEC) has a multipurpose pilot scale facility (ROBO, Russia) 60Co, and linear electron accelerator facility (D-EPS-T30-30-002V, VIVARAD, France), which are used for pilot and semi- commercial irradiation of food, and about 2000 metric tons of food are irradiated yearly.