Evening star., 1953-10-05
Atomic Rudiutions Used
For SteriIizing Of Foods
Important Barriers Seen
To industrial Use Still
By Thomos R. Henry

Sterilization of foods by atomic radia.
tions is of great potential industrial
significance.
This is stressed by Maj. Gen. Clar-
ence L. Adcock, now director Of re-
search Of the Continental Can Co., in a
report to the American Chemical
Society.
Successful sterilization, he points out,
has been achieved at several research
centerS in the United States and ade-
quate techniqueS are being developed,
although there remain important bar
riers to industrial use.
One method Is the use of high voltage
beta rays, or streams of electrons. These
penetrate SemiliQuid foods about a
half inch for each million volts of
energy applied. Gamma rays from
atomic fiSsion products penetrate from
four to six inches. Both types of radia-
ton totally destroy bacteria as far as
they penetrate.
"The significance of radiation sterili-
zation," Gen. Adcock says, "is that
foods can be completely sterilized in the
cold or frozen state. Steaks prepack-
aged in plastic wrappers have been ster-
Aized and stored at room temperature
for two or three weeks and then fried
and eaten as freshly cooked meat. Some
fruits, vegetables and fish have been
successfully sterilized.
while the potentialities of radiation
sterilization are tremendous, the reduc-
ton of present costs to economic levels
and the protection of personnel operat-
ing the equipment constitute two major
problems to be solved before these new
methods can be adopted commercially"
Meanwhile, Gen. Adcock points out.
better packaging of some foods for
wider distribution depends on the de-
velopment of new sterilization and
packing methods. These include high,
Short-heat sterilization and better asep-
tic canning Developments.
+
Antibotic ice for preserving fish
against bacterial spoilage has been de-
veloped by Canadian scientists.
Flake ice containing only one part
in a million of aureomycin gives great
promise of lengthening the store life
of sea foods, Drs H. A. L. Tarr, j. Boyd
and H. M. Bissett of the Pacific Fish
cries experiment station at Vancouver.
B. c., have reported to the American
Chemical Society.
They investigated the effects Of IS
antibioticS incorporated in ice. Only
aureomycin and terramycin were found
to have pronounced antibacterial ac-
tivity in the low concentrations neces-
sary.
They also reported use of aureomycin
to preserve whole fish by immersing a
fish shortly after capture in solution
Of the antibiotic and then placing it in
ordinary ice. Fish also have been pre-
served in cold sea water containing the
bacteria killing material.
Research now is being carried on,
they reported, on methods for determ-
lining the aureomycin content of the
flesh of treated fish. Initial work has
shown that the antibiotic does not de-
compose after four days of storage at
degrees c. Added preservatives, such
as sodium nitrate and vitamin C, do
not cause appreciable destruction Of
the drug. The Canadian scientists now
are working on very sensitive test to
determine whether the antibiotic actu-
ally diffuses into the flesh of the treated
fish.
Boiling the fish for half an hour de-
stroys more than 90 per cent of the
drug present they reported.