NUCLEAR technology conjures images of reactors, fallout and glowing materials, so it is perhaps unsurprising that food developed using nuclear techniques raises alarm bells for many consumers.
The concern that crops produced with the help of radiation may themselves become radioactive has persisted despite scientists' assurances to the contrary.
But is food developed using nuclear technology actually radioactive?
Verdict:
FALSE
Food developed using nuclear technology is safe to eat and does not become radioactive, researchers have assured consumers amid persistent misconceptions surrounding the science.
Malaysian Nuclear Agency research officer Norazlina Noordin said gamma radiation was used only to induce genetic changes in planting materials, which were then cultivated and screened for desirable traits.
"The radiation only passes through the material, much like an X-ray.
"There is no radioactive residue left behind," said Norazlina, who is attached to the agency’s Agrotechnology and Biosciences Division, on Saturday (Aug 22).
She said this when met at the Nuclear Advocacy Programme: Nuklear Untuk Rakyat (N.U.R) Women’s Edition, which seeks to improve public understanding of nuclear technology and its everyday applications.
For its cassava research, she said stem cuttings are exposed to gamma radiation before being planted and monitored over several generations.
Researchers then screen the plants for traits such as earlier maturity, higher yields and resistance to diseases, pests and changing weather conditions, she added.
Norazlina said the agency had identified new cassava lines that could mature in six months, compared with the usual 11 to 12 months, without compromising yields.
The technique was also used to develop the NMR 152 rice variety, which she said has been commercialised and is already being planted by Malaysian farmers.
Malaysian Nuclear Agency director-general Dr Muhammad Rawi Mohamed Zin similarly stressed that crops produced through the technique did not contain radioactive materials.
“The products we develop through nuclear techniques are not radioactive.
“We do not add radioactive substances to them, so they are safe,” he said.
Muhammad Rawi said nuclear technology was being applied to develop more productive and resilient crops as part of efforts to strengthen Malaysia’s food security.
“We focus on crops that can have a significant impact, particularly those needed by the country and those with economic value,” he said.
