Ms. Foreman said that she did not object to the additions to the safety standards, but that she believed that the agency must continue to check for salmonella. Dr. Clayton said he had no idea how many companies would choose to irradiate their ground beef. Critics of irradiation say it is the easy way to sterilize harmful bacteria but does nothing to improve the safety of the meat processor. It would be up to the schools to notify parents if they planned to serve irradiated hamburgers. Irradiation shatters the genetic material of bacteria, killing them.
Scientists say the process leaves no residual radioactivity.
The government began allowing beef to be irradiated a year ago, but relatively little has been produced, in part because of doubts about whether most consumers would accept it. Mishandling of food, even if it has been irradiated or previously tested as untainted, can introduce harmful bacteria. And improperly handled raw beef can cross-contaminate raw food with which it comes in contact. Salmonella causes 1.4 million illnesses and 600 deaths a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It would also test for generic e-coli, which in itself is not harmful but which indicates the presence of fecal contamination.