SADER Promotes Project to Implement Food Irradiation

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER) is working on a project to convert the former Mediterranean Fruit Fly Facility, located in Metapa de Dominguez, Chiapas, into a food irradiation plant.

According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), food irradiation is a technology that improves safety and extends the shelf life of foods by reducing or eliminating microorganisms and insects.

The project aims to enable fruit growers in the southeastern region to export ionizing-radiated fresh fruit to international markets. Irradiation can serve many purposes like the prevention of foodborne illnesses such as salmonella and E. coli, food preservation and food sterilization. Moreover, irradiation also decreases the need for other pest-control practices that may harm the quality of fruit.

The FDA has approved a variety of foods for irradiation in the US including beef and pork, crustaceans such as lobster, shrimp and crab, fresh fruits and vegetables, lettuce and spinach, poultry, seeds for sprouts, eggs, shellfish and spices. 

Francisco Delgado, Director General, the Shared Risk Trust (Firco), and Francisco Ramírez, Director General of Plant Health, the National Service of Health, Safety and Food Quality (SENASICA), said the project will mainly support fruit producers from the southeast. “Having an irradiation treatment plant will create new jobs, reduce the transfer time of the product from harvest to shelf and ensure that phytosanitary risks are adequately mitigated,” said Ramírez.

Ramírez pointed out that food irradiation is safe and will boost the exports of products like mango, carambola, chile manzano, pomegranate, fig, orange, guava, pitaya rambutan and black sapote to the US, Japan and the EU. 

The plant for phytosanitary treatment BENEBION built in 2011, in Matehuala, San Luis Potosi, was the first of its kind in Mexico. The plant is operated by Phytosan, a Mexican company specializing in the irradiation of products such as fruits, vegetables, dehydrated foods, spices, powders and medical equipment.