Report from the Commission on food irradiation for the period September 2000 to December 2001
Date: 2002-10-09
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: application of EU law, food inspection, foodstuff, irradiated product, irradiation, report, research body

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Official Journal of the European Communities

23.10.2002

Report from the Commission on food irradiation for the period September 2000 to December
2001

(COM(2002) 549 final)

(2002/C 255/02)

SUMMARY

Directive 1999/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 on the
approximation of the laws of the Member States concerning foods and food ingredients treated with
ionising radiation became applicable on 20 September 2000. Since 20 March 2001 all irradiated foods
on the market have to comply with the requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC. According to its Article 7(3)
the Member States shall forward to the Commission every year:

— the results of checks carried out in the irradiation facilities, in particular regarding the categories and

quantities of products treated and the dose administered, and

— the results of checks carried out at the product marketing stage and the methods used to detect

irradiated foods.

During the period covered by this report (September 2000 to December 2001) only six Member States had
given an approval to facilities on their territory to irradiate foods. However four of these Member States
had not yet transposed the Directive into national
law. The individual reports of the Member States
indicate that all facilities complied with most of the requirements of the Directive. The level of detail
of these reports differed however substantially. For future reports the Commission will establish clear
guidelines for a harmonised reporting format.

Eight Member States performed checks on foods placed on the market. The food types included in these
checks varied between the Member States. The results show that in general only a few irradiated products
are on the market which are not labelled as ‘irradiated’ (about 0,5 %). These products are herbs, spices or
foods containing herbs or spices, frog legs, shrimps, prawns and vegetables. However,
in the United
Kingdom authorities found that 42 % of certain dietary supplements on the market are irradiated. Most
of these products are not very common (aloe vera, alfalfa, cat's claw, devil's claw, garlic, ginger, ginkgo
biloba, ginseng, guarana, kava kava, saw palmetto, silymarin, turmeric). As the treatment of most of these
products by ionising radiation is not allowed in the EU, other Member States have been asked to check this
sector in order to ensure that the requirements of the Directive are respected.

In total more than 6 500 EUR food samples have been checked of which about 1,5 % (including the
irradiated dietary supplements in the United Kingdom) were irradiated but not labelled. Some of them, in
particular most of the dietary supplements, are not authorised for treatment by ionising radiation in the
EU. The Commission expects that the number of irradiated dietary supplements will decrease sharply in
consequence of additional checks performed by food control authorities of the Member States.

On the basis of the available information, the Commission concludes that, in general, the provisions of
Directive 1999/2/EC are respected, in particular the labelling requirements that food business operators
must indicate on each product whether it is irradiated or contains irradiated ingredients. Now that all
Member States have transposed the Directives into national law, the Commission expects that compliance
will improve even further.

1. LEGAL BASIS AND BACKGROUND

Directive 1999/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 on the
approximation of the laws of the Member States concerning foods and food ingredients treated with
ionising radiation (1) became applicable on 20 September 2000. All
irradiated foods on the market
have to comply with the requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC since 20 March 2001. According to its
Article 7(3) the Member States shall forward to the Commission every year:

(1) OJ L 66, 13.3.1999, p. 16.

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— the results of checks carried out in the irradiation facilities, in particular regarding the categories and

quantities of products treated and the dose administered, and

— the results of checks carried out at the product marketing stage and the methods used to detect

irradiated foods.

Some Member States did not transpose Directive 1999/2/EC into national
i.e. before 20
September 2000. The Commission launched therefore infringement procedures against some Member
States. Since June 2002, the Directives have been transposed in all Member States. Due to the delayed
transposition, not all checks have been performed according to the requirements of the Directive during
the period covered by this report.

law in time,

For practical reasons, this first report covers the period from 20 September 2000 to 31 December 2001.
The following reports should then cover one full calendar year.

Information on general aspects of food irradiation, on EU legislation and on standardised analytical
methods for the detection of irradiated foods is available on the website of the Directorate-General
Health and Consumer Protection of the European Commission (2).

1.1. Irradiation facilities

According to Article 3(2) of Directive 1999/2/EC food may only be irradiated in approved irradiation
facilities. In order to obtain approval, the facilities have to comply with the requirements of the Joint
FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission recommended international code of practice for the operation
of irradiation facilities used for the treatment of foods. For facilities in the EU, approval is given by the
competent authorities of the Member States (2). The Member States have to inform the Commission about
their approved irradiation facilities (Article 7(1)).

At the beginning of the period covered by this report, six Member States had given approval to facilities to
irradiate foods. Only the Netherlands and the United Kingdom had approved their facilities according to
Directive 1999/2/EC. Belgium, Germany, Denmark and France had not yet transposed the Directive into
national law and, therefore, their approvals were based on former national provisions. The list of auth-
orised facilities in the Member States has been published and updated by the Commission (3), (4), (5).

1.2. Irradiated foods

The irradiation of dried aromatic herbs, spices and vegetable seasonings is authorised in the EU (Directive
1999/3/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 on the establishment of a
Community list of food and food ingredients treated with ionising radiation (6)). In addition, five Member
States maintain national authorisations for certain foods in accordance with Article 4(4) of Directive
1999/2/EC. The
the
Commission (7), (8), (9).

authorisations has been published

and up-dated by

list of national

According to Article 6 of Directive 1999/2/EC any irradiated food or any irradiated food ingredient of a
compound food need to be labelled by the words ‘irradiated’ or ‘treated with ionising radiation’.

For the enforcement of the correct labelling or to detect non-authorised products, several analytical
methods (2) have been standardised by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), following a
mandate given by the Commission.

(2) http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sfp/fi_index_en.html
(3) OJ C 128, 28.4.2001, p. 7.
(4) OJ C 38, 12.2.2002, p. 17.
(5) OJ C 145, 18.6.2002, p. 5.
(6) OJ L 66, 13.3.1999, p. 24.
(7) OJ C 128, 28.4.2001, p. 6.
(8) OJ C 43, 16.2.2002, p. 18.
(9) OJ C 174, 20.7.2002, p. 3.

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2. RESULTS OF CHECKS CARRIED OUT IN THE IRRADIATION FACILITIES

The Member States submitted the following information:

2.1. Belgium

IBA-Mediris, Fleurus, reported to the Belgium Federal Agency for Nuclear Control that 5 836 t of food has
been irradiated in 2001.

2.2. Germany

Germany had approved two irradiation facilities during the period covered by this report:

(a) Gamma Service, Radeberg

The following table provides the categories and quantities of foods irradiated in the company Gamma
Service, with the average absorbed doses. The vegetables were irradiated for export to non-EU countries.

Food

Amount (t)

Average absorbed dose (kGy)

Spices, seasonings

Vegetables

440

32

472 t

Total

(*) Not authorised in the Community.

7-9

7-10 (*)

(b) Gammaster Deutschland GmbH, Allershausen (4)

An inspection by the competent authority on 9 October 2001 confirmed compliance with the
requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC.

The company irradiated exclusively food for export to third countries.

2.3. Denmark

The Danish irradiation facilities authorised under the previous national authorisation agreed to stop
irradiating foods until
they were approved in accordance with Directive 1999/2/EC. Therefore, no
checks were performed by the Danish competent authority during the period 20 September 2000 and
31 March 2002.

2.4. France

In France, six facilities were approved under national regulations during the period covered by this report.
No checks were performed since the approval of the facilities according to Directive 1999/2/EC was
ongoing.

The following table provides the categories and quantities of foods irradiated in France during 2001:

Food

Amount (t)

Average absorbed dose (kGy)

Spices, herbs, dehydrated vegetables

Dried fruits

Gum arabic

1 218

17

543

10

1

3

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Food

Amount (t)

Average absorbed dose (kGy)

Mechanically recovered chicken meat, meat and offal of
chicken

Frozen frog legs

Dehydrated blood

4 222

878

38

5

5

10

(*) 8 853 t were treated during the year 2000.

Total

6 925 t (*)

2.5. The Netherlands

In the Netherlands there are two facilities in Ede and Etten-Leur, owned by the company Gammaster BV,
which are licensed for performing irradiation by the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sports.
Inspections have been carried out by the Dutch Food Inspection Service (Keuringsdienst van Waren).

In general, the facilities complied with most of the requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC. The shortcomings
identified during the inspection were discussed between the company and the competent authority.
Follow-up by the Food Inspection Service has been foreseen in order to check whether the shortcomings
are adequately addressed.

The following table provides the categories and quantities of foods irradiated in the Netherlands between
1 October 2000 until 30 September 2001:

Food

Amount (t) in Ede

Amount (t) in
Etten-Leur

Average absorbed dose
(kGy)

Spices, herbs

Dehydrated vegetables

Food additives (*)

Dried fruits

Flavourings (*)

Poultry meat

Shrimps

Frog parts

Egg whites

Samples (*)

No information
submitted

2 609

656

66

138

45

1 539

116

135

95

33

30

1 245

915

—

—

479

27

33

673

—

(*) Not authorised in the Community.

Total

8 843 t

2.6. United Kingdom

The company Isotron is licensed to irradiate certain spices and herbs. No food has been irradiated since
1999. An inspection, performed on 17 May 2001 by the competent authority, confirmed compliance with
the requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC.

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2.7. Summary for the EU

The exact amount of foods irradiated in the EU during the period covered is not known due to incomplete
reporting. Available reports account for approximately 22 000 t. Part of this amount has been irradiated
for export, however the Directive does not require to report the portion which is placed on the internal
market or which is exported.

3. RESULTS OF CHECKS CARRIED OUT AT THE PRODUCT MARKETING STAGE AND THE METHODS

USED TO DETECT IRRADIATED FOODS

The Member States submitted the following information:

3.1. Austria

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

CEN method used

Spices

Total in % of analysed samples

21

100

EN 1788

0

0

3.2. Belgium

No analytical checks have been performed.

3.3. Germany

Number of analysed samples

Food analysed

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled
(origin)

CEN method used

Milk products

Cheese

Cheese with herbs

Butter with herbs

Egg, egg products

Meat (including frozen meat)

Meat products (except sausages)

Sausages

Poultry, game

Meat, poultry, game

Fish, fish products

Crustaceans

5

21

190

10

51

165

37

108

46

118

120

341

0

0

EN 1784, EN 1788

3 cream cheese
with herbs

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788, prEN 13751

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1784, EN 1786,
EN 1787

EN 1786

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788

EN 1784, EN 1787

EN 1784, EN 1786

EN 1786

EN 1785, EN 1787,
EN 1788

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Number of analysed samples

Food analysed

Result: non-irradiated

Crustaceans, shell fish, molluscs and other
aquatic animals and their products

Pulses

Soups, sauce

Cereals, cereal products

Oil seeds

Nuts

Potatoes, parts of plants with high starch
content

Fresh vegetables, salad

Dried vegetables, vegetable products

Mushrooms, fresh

Mushrooms, dried or products

Fresh fruits

Dried fruits or fruit products

Cacao powder

Coffee, raw

Tea, tea-like products

Ready-to-serve meals

Seasonings,
seasoning salts

including preparations and

197

49

68

33

38

186

94

77

73

98

175

505

305

39

1

131

39

256

Spices and herbs

1 897

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled
(origin)

3 frog legs
(1 Indonesia,
2 unknown origin)

CEN method used

EN 1787, EN 1788

0

0

0

0

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1784

EN 1784, EN 1788,
prEN 13751

EN 1787

1 pistachio
(US, California)

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788

0

0

0

0

EN 1788

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1788

2 mushrooms
1 cep

EN 1787, EN 1788

0

0

0

0

0

0

1 seasoning salt
(Germany),
contained also
curry, coriander,
paprika, spices

1 ground chilli (US,
California) 4
marjoram (2 from
Hungary, 2
unknown origin), 7
paprika, 2 caraway,
1 basil

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1787, EN 1788

EN 1784, EN 1787

EN 1784, EN 1787,
EN 1788, prEN 13751

EN 1787, EN 1788,
prEN 13751

EN 1788, prEN 13751

EN 1784

Asian noodle snacks, party snacks, pizza,
TV snacks

Alcoholic beverages

Total

Total in % of analysed samples

9

9

5 491

99,5

0

0

26

0,5

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3.4. Denmark

The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration have not on a routine basis carried out analytical control
to specifically check for irradiated foods at the marketing stage. There are two main reasons for this:

to the authorities that

1. All Danish food producers, importers and retailers are obliged to carry out auto-controls in order to
document
legislation. An integral part of
they comply with the current
inspections carried out by the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration is the document control
ensuring that all operators can document that they only use or market products containing irradiated
dried aromatic herbs or spices if they are properly labelled.

2. In Denmark an indirect approach to check for unlabelled or non-authorised irradiated foods has been
chosen: On a continuous basis, a broad selection of foodstuffs is analytically monitored for their
microbial quality. The results are also used as a first screening procedure to check whether dried
aromatic herbs and spices have undergone irradiation.
If a sample deviates significantly from the
background,
it is taken out for further analysis in order to determine if it has been irradiated or
not. During the period of 20 September 2000 to 31 March 2002, this process has not identified
any sample which might have been irradiated.

3.5. Spain

No analytical checks have been performed.

3.6. Finland

Food analysed

Marinated meat products

Spices

Total

Total in % of analysed samples

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

20

133

153

97,5

4

0

4

2,5

CEN method used

pr EN13751, if positive,
confirmation by EN 1788

The checks focused on the use of irradiated spices in marinated meat products and the possible irradiation
of spices sold directly to the consumer. By traceability studies it was found that the same irradiated paprika
powder had been used in the manufacture of all four irradiated non-labelled samples of marinated meat
products.

3.7. France

No analytical checks have been performed.

3.8. Greece

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

CEN method used

Spices

Total in % of analysed samples

99

100

0

0

prEN 13751

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3.9. Italy

No analytical checks have been performed. However, a training course for staff of public laboratories is
foreseen for the second half of 2002.

3.10. Ireland

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

CEN method used

Spices

Total in % of analysed samples

315

99,4

1 basil, 1 nutmeg

prEN 13751

0,6

3.11. Luxembourg

No analytical checks have been performed as there was no analytical equipment available.

3.12. The Netherlands

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

Shrimps

Total in % of analysed samples

88

100

0

0

CEN method used

prEN 13751, EN 1788

3.13. Portugal

No analytical checks have been performed.

3.14. Sweden

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

CEN method used

Chicken meat

Total in % of analysed samples

5

83

EN 1784

1

17

3.15. United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom checks were performed on herbs and spices, prawns and shrimps as well as on
dietary supplements (10). Authorities found that 42 % of checked dietary supplements on the market were
irradiated. The irradiation of most of these products is not authorised in the EU (11). Some of these
products, most of which are not very common, are also sold as medicinal products.

(10) Products like: aloe vera, alfalfa, cat's claw, devil's claw, garlic, ginger, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, guarana, kava kava,

saw palmetto, silymarin (milk thistle), turmeric.

(11) Garlic is authorised in some Member States (see footnote 9). Some products can be considered as spices which are

authorised for radiation treatment in the whole EU.

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Of the 64 samples which were found to be irradiated and unlabelled, 58 were dietary supplements.
Detailed information is available on the Internet (12).

Food analysed

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated,
not correctly labelled

CEN method used

Herbs and spices

Prawns and shrimps

Dietary supplements

Total

Total in % of analysed samples

Total in % of analysed samples without
dietary supplements

(*) Not authorised in the Community.

prEN 13751, if positive or
intermediate EN 1788

prEN 13751, if positive or
intermediate EN 1788

prEN 13751, if positive or
intermediate EN 1788

202

197

80

479

88,2

98,5

1 containing
irradiated
components

1 irradiated whole,
4 containing
irradiated
components

44 irradiated
whole, 14
containing
irradiated
components (*)

64

11,8

1,5

3.16. Summary for the EU

The following table adds the samples analysed and the results obtained for the whole EU:

Member State

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated, not correctly
labelled

A

B

D

DK

E

FIN

F

EL

I

IRL

L

NL

(12) http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/68301.

21

—

5 491

—

—

153

—

99

—

315

—

88

0

—

26

—

—

4

—

0

—

2

—

0

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Member State

Number of analysed samples

Result: non-irradiated

Result: irradiated, not correctly
labelled

P

S

UK

Total

Total in % of analysed samples

Total in % of analysed samples without
dietary supplements analysed in the UK

—

5

479

6 651

98,6

99,4

—

1

64

97

1,4

0,6

4. CONCLUSIONS

Most Member States transposed Directive 1999/2/EC only during the period covered by this report.
Therefore, certain requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC had not been enforced at national level for the
whole period.

4.1. Results of checks carried out in the irradiation facilities

Directive 1999/2/EC requires the Member States to inform the Commission about results of checks in
irradiation facilities, about the categories and quantities of foods irradiated and about the average doses
applied.

Six Member States had given approval to irradiation facilities on their territory during the period covered
by this report. However only in the Netherlands and in the United Kingdom were approvals given
according to Directive 1999/2/EC. Approvals in Belgium, Germany and France were based on former
national rules.

The Directive does not specify the level of detail for the reports. Consequently, the reports of the Member
States differed substantially. Some Member States did not provide all the information requested with
respect
to categories, quantities or doses and gave only general statements. The checked facilities
complied with most of the requirements of Directive 1999/2/EC.

In order to get complete information and comparable reports in the future, the Commission will set up a
check list and will specify which results should be reported. The checks should be performed on a regular
basis.

4.2. Results of checks carried out at the product marketing stage

Directive 1999/2/EC requires the Member States to inform about results of checks carried out at the
product marketing stage and the analytical methods used to detect irradiated foods.

Eight Member States submitted the requested data, whereas seven did not perform analytical checks during
the period covered. The Commission expects that in the future all Member States perform checks in order
to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Directive in the whole EU.

The results in the eight Member States are similar, although the number of samples analysed differs widely.
Only a few products on the market were found to be irradiated and not labelled. These products are
mainly herbs and spices or compound foods containing herbs and spices. Also, a few samples of
non-labelled irradiated frog legs, shrimps, prawns and vegetables have been detected.

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The United Kingdom also performed checks on dietary supplements. The results indicated that 42 % of the
products checked were irradiated. Most of these products are also sold as medicinal products. However,
care was taken during sampling to focus on the products which were sold as food. As most of these
products are not authorised for treatment by ionising radiation in the EU, other Member States were asked
by the Commission to check this sector in order to ensure that the requirements of the Directive are
respected.

In total more than 6 500 food samples have been checked of which about 1,5 % (including the irradiated
dietary supplements in the United Kingdom) were irradiated but not labelled. Some of them, in particular
most of the dietary supplements (11), are not authorised for treatment by ionising radiation in the EU. The
Commission expects that the number of irradiated dietary supplements will decrease sharply as a conse-
quence of additional checks by the food control authorities of the Member States, now that the problem
has been identified.

4.3. General conclusions

In general,
it can be stated that compliance with the provisions of Directive 1999/2/EC is good. The
checked irradiation facilities complied with most of the provisions and only a very limited number of
irradiated samples have been detected which were not labelled or which were not authorised for irradiation
treatment, with the exception of dietary supplements. For the latter, the Commission asked the Member
States to control this sector and expects a sharp decrease of the number of irradiated dietary supplements
as a result of these checks.

The Commission invites the Member States to regularly perform the necessary checks on irradiation
facilities and on food products in order to enforce the requirements of the Directive in the whole EU.
The Commission will develop guidelines to ensure more uniform reporting of results.

Notice of the expiry of certain anti-dumping measures

(2002/C 255/03)

Further to the publication of a notice of impending expiry (1), following which no request for a review was
received, the Commission gives notice that the anti-dumping measures mentioned below will shortly
expire.

This notice is published in accordance with Article 11(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 384/96 of 22
December 1995 (2) on protection against dumped imports from countries not members of the European
Community.

Product

Country(ies) of origin
or exportation

Measures

Reference

Date of expiry

Footwear (with textile
uppers)

People's Republic of
China
Indonesia

Duty

Council Regulation (EC)
No 2155/97
(OJ L 298, 1.11.1997)

1.11.2002

(1) OJ C 29, 1.2.2002, p. 2.
(2) OJ L 56, 6.3.1996, p. 1, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2238/2000 (OJ L 257, 11.10.2000, p. 2).