Fw: (radfood-list) Press Release: New Report on WHO andIrradiation

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From: " Mikhail " <mmikhail@...>

Sent: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 7:55 AM

Subject: (radfood-list) Press Release: New Report on WHO andIrradiation

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PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Contact:

Wenonah Hauter (202) 409-6117

Oct. 8, 2002 a Hartman (202) 454-5174

World Health Organization Ignored Hazards

of Irradiated Foods, Declared Them Safe

New Report Contains Evidence That Serious Health Problems Dismissed;

Emphasis Placed on Commercialization

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The World Health Organization (WHO), which has declared

irradiated foods safe for human consumption, has ignored a growing body of

evidence clearly indicating otherwise, according to a report released today

by Public Citizen and Global Resource Action Center for the Environment

(GRACE). Despite this evidence, the WHO and other international agencies are

working to expand the legalization, commercialization and consumer

acceptance of irradiated foods, the report found.

The WHO has dismissed 50 years' worth of research documenting a wide range

of serious health problems in laboratory animals that ate irradiated foods,

including premature death, mutation, prenatal death and other reproductive

problems, fatal internal bleeding, suppressed immune systems, organ damage,

tumors, stunted growth and nutritional deficiencies, according to the

report, Bad Taste: The Disturbing Truth About the World Health

Organization's Endorsement of Food Irradiation.

The WHO also has dismissed recent evidence linking cyclobutanones, chemical

byproducts formed in certain irradiated foods, to cancer development and

tumors in rats, and genetic damage in human cells, the report states.

Cyclobutanones have never been found to occur naturally in any food.

Government officials throughout the world, including the United States, have

relied on the WHO's findings to legalize food irradiation. In the United

States, beef, poultry, pork, fruits, vegetables, eggs, wheat, spices and

sprouting seeds can legally be irradiated.

" The WHO's negligence could put at risk the health of millions of people

throughout the world. These risks will only deepen as food supply systems

become more globalized, " said Wenonah Hauter, director of Public Citizen's

Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. " It is irresponsible to

promote the use of a questionable method while ignoring evidence that points

to the dangers associated with it. "

Bad Taste reveals that, despite mounting evidence to the contrary, the WHO

proclaimed in 1999 that " treating " foods with high doses of ionizing

radiation " does not result in any toxicological hazard. "

" The WHO's job is to protect the health of the world's citizens - not use

them as guinea pigs for experimental food products, " said Alice Slater,

president of GRACE. " The WHO should immediately get out of the irradiated

food business. "

The report also found that:

? The WHO has abandoned its original research agenda crafted in 1961, which

urged comprehensive research on the basic human health implications of

irradiated foods.

? The WHO has ceded to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose

mission is preserving the nuclear industry, not the health of people, the

ultimate power of researching the safety of irradiated foods. The IAEA is

leading a global campaign to further the legalization, commercialization and

consumer acceptance of irradiated foods. " We must confer with experts in the

various fields of advertising and psychology to put the public at ease, " one

IAEA report states. The consultants recommended that " identification of the

process should not be required on the label. "

? The IAEA and the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

also have misrepresented a vast body of research that revealed health

problems in animals that ate irradiated foods and stated instead that no

such problems were attributable to irradiation. Further, some compelling

research was omitted from key WHO reports.

Public Citizen and GRACE recommend the following:

? The WHO should promptly shift the focus of its peer-reviewed research into

the core safety and wholesomeness issues and investigate the presence of

various toxic chemicals in irradiated foods.

? The WHO, IAEA and FAO should immediately withdraw their endorsements of

irradiation for all foods at any dose and refrain from recommending the

further expansion of food irradiation.

? The United Nations should appoint an independent panel of experts from the

fields of toxicology, food science, radiation chemistry and nutrition to

conduct a comprehensive review of the WHO, IAEA and FAO activities related

to food irradiation.

###

To read or download Bad Taste online, go to

http://www.citizen.org/documents/BadTaste.pdf.

Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization based

in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.citizen.org.

The Global Resource Action Center for the Environment, based in New York

City, works to form links between research, policy and grassroots

communities to protect the quality of the environment. For more information,

visit www.gracelink.org.

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