Irradiation in the Production, Processing and Handling of Food

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responding to objections and is denying requests that it has received for a hearing on the final rule that amended the food additive regulations by establishing a new maximum permitted energy level of x-rays for treating food of 7.5 million electron volts (MeV) provided that the x- rays are generated from machine sources that use tantalum or gold as the target material, with no change in the maximum permitted dose levels or uses currently permitted by FDA's food additive regulations. After reviewing the objections to the final rule and the requests for a hearing, the agency has concluded that the objections do not raise issues of material fact that justify a hearing or otherwise provide a basis for removing the amendment to the regulation.