Both are radioactive materials that do not give off neutrons, which means that this material does not make anything around it radioactive. This technology has been used routinely for more than 30 years to sterilize medical, dental and household products. There have been numerous spills and leaks of radioactive material and worker exposures from irradiation facilities worldwide. Irradiated food is becoming widely available. Some stores have sold irradiated fruits and vegetables since the early 1990s.
Irradiated meat is available in some grocery stores and on menus in a few restaurants.
Some spices also are irradiated to control pests. Ground beef and chicken will be the most commonly irradiated foods. In electron beam irradiation, food is irradiated by a machine called a linear accelerator. A linear accelerator generates electrons, similar to a television tube, that are accelerated, bent and scanned over the product. No radioactive material is used.