Hello Bill!
Replying to a message of Bill Ewald to Larry Fletcher:
 BE> * In a message to All on 12-06-96, LARRY FLETCHER said the following:
 LF>> -- Food irradiation exposes food to the equivalent of 30 million
 LF>> chest 
 LF>> X-rays.
 BE>         Since food is not a living organism, what does this tell us?
Nothing.
 LF>> -- Irradiation creates new chemicals in foods called radiolytic 
 LF>> products. Some of these products are known cancer-causing 
 LF>> substances (like benzene in irradiated beef). Others are unique to
 LF>> the 
 LF>> irradiation process and no one knows what effects these have on 
 LF>> human health.
Not true! Another of the 'FUD' being put out by the anti-nuke lobbies.
 BE> What information are the regulators operating with? Would a
 BE> ban on food irradiation lead to a ban on grilled hamburgers on the
 BE> same health bases?
 LF>> -- Irradiation destroys essential vitamins and nutrients that are 
 LF>> naturally present in food. No studies have been done to show that a 
 LF>> long-term diet of irradiated foods is safe. Safer, well-tested 
 LF>> alternatives to irradiation exist.
Again, total BS.
 LF>> -- Irradiation plants pose environmental threats to workers and 
 LF>> surrounding communities. The transportation of nuclear materials to 
 LF>> irradiation facilities also poses severe public health risks.
 BE>         Is cobalt-60 the source of the radiation?
Normally. It is also very safe to transport and has been in use for many 
decades in the medical industry.
TTYL,
John Meroth
--- FleetStreet 1.17 NR
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