Pegasus Foods Canada and its sister company, Pegasus Foods Japan Inc., are asking for a jury trial. MDS Inc. It also names as defendants 100 unidentified agents, or John Does, of Food Technology Service. Food Technology Service, formerly known as Vindicator Inc., has been waging a public relations campaign for 15 years to convince consumers that eating irradiated food is safe. The company got it biggest break when the FDA approved irradiation of red meat in December 1997 and the Department of Agriculture came up with rules about how it can be done in 1999. Food Technology Service faces stiff competition from Titan Corp. of San Diego, which has contracts with the nation's top two beef packers.
Titan uses electron beams instead of gamma rays to irradiate meat.
Pegasus is headquartered in Delta, British Columbia. It processes and distributes seafood to supermarket chains, restaurants and food processors throughout the world. The company has been in the seafood business since 1978. It has sales offices in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan, and Vancouver, British Columbia. It has a field office and processing operation in Valdez, Alaska.