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Irradiation Know-How – we are aware, we take care!
Irradiation is a normative process which is strictly regulated. The service provider is under obligation to respect the means and the dosage for treatment. It is essential to define the objectives for the type of product being irradiated in order to ensure the sanitary and hygienic qualities.
Treatment by ionization is a reliable, standardized process applicable to a wide range of products and materials to achieve sanitazion or sterility in the products.
The health quality of a diet after irradiation depends mainly on the following factors:
- the bacterial / viral bioburden prior to irradiation
- the effective dose applied throughout the entire mass of the product
- the minimum dose effectively applied
- the risk of recontamination after irradiation, respectively the importance of the chosen packaging, like vacuum-wrapped, double paper and/or plastic bags
Irradiation Box by Box
For Constant Diet Quality
The quality and effect of the irradiation depends on the chosen technique: whole pallet or individual packaging.
SAFE® irradiates products bag by bag to guarantee a homogeneous irradiation. This concept allows to reduce and control the negative effects of irradiation on diets, especially the oxidation of vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
SAFE® Irradiation Standard
Autoclaving vs. Irradiation
Autoclaving
- high temperatures of autoclaving increase the denaturation of proteins and influence the digestibility of the diet
- toxic neoformed composites
- heat-sensitive ingredients such as vitamins denature through high temperatures
- oxidation of components like fatty acids takes place
Most of these effects are compensated in the production of autoclavable diets by an additional dosage of nutrients. This ensures that the correct nutrient content is maintained after autoclaving. Furthermore, a reliable and constant autoclaving treatment must be carried out and guaranteed. By following the above suggestions, the risk of forming indigestible fractions or antinutritive composites can be minimized.
Irradiation
- negative effects of oxidation are minimized by:
- bag by bag irradiation
- use of vacuum sealed bags which prevent recontamination of the product - thermal effects are much lower compared to autoclaving
- denaturation of DNA without any major nutritional effects
RECOMMENDATION
The temporary storage of products that have already been autoclaved bears the risk of nutritional degradation and recontamination.
The expenses associated with the operation of an autoclave such as validation, maintenance, operating costs, etc. can be avoided by using irradiated products.
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