Final answer:
Food irradiation kills microorganisms by creating free radicals and radiolytic products that break apart cell membranes, without making the food radioactive. Different doses are used to prevent, reduce, or completely eliminate microorganism growth, with high doses utilized for sterilization. The process has been deemed safe for short-term consumption with no significant nutrient loss.
Step-by-step explanation:
Food irradiation is the treatment of food with ionizing radiation to kill microorganisms and insects that can spoil the food and possibly cause foodborne illnesses. During food irradiation, free radicals and radiolytic products are created which can disrupt and break apart the cell membranes of bacteria and other pathogens. At different doses defined as low, medium, and high, radiation has varied effects; low doses up to 1000 Gy are used to inhibit the growth of microorganisms on fresh produce, medium doses are needed to kill certain bacteria like Salmonella, and high doses exceeding 10,000 Gy are used for sterilization.
The safety of food irradiation is often debated, but studies have shown that the process does not make the food radioactive nor produce observable negative short-term effects in humans. Nevertheless, the long-term effects of consuming irradiated food remain unknown.