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Contents Food Ingredients and Packaging terms Program Areas Guidance and Regulations Guidance for Petitions and Notifications CFR Citations and FR Documents Databases |
OverviewThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for regulating the use of irradiation in the treatment of food and food packaging. This authority derives from the 1958 Food Additives Amendment to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) where Congress explicitly defined a source of radiation as a food additive (Section 201(s) of the FD&C Act). The 1958 Food Additives Amendment also provides that a food is adulterated (that is, it cannot be marketed legally) if it has been irradiated, unless the irradiation is carried out in conformity with a regulation prescribing safe conditions of use (Section 403(a)(7) of the FD&C Act). Thus, FDA regulates the lawful use of irradiation through the food additive petition process, the completion of which results in the promulgation of a regulation published in the Federal Register prescribing the approved use. This Internet site is intended to serve as a source of general as well as more specific regulatory and scientific information about the irradiation of food and packaging for consumers, representatives from industry, and other stakeholders. Background
Consumer Information
Industry Information
Selected Federal Register Documents
Guidance and Regulations
Levels of Irradiation for Foods and Packaging Materials
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