“Official Journal No. 23868, dated November 6, 1999”

From the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs:

FOOD IRRADIATION REGULATION

PART I

Object, Scope, Basis and Definitions

Object

Article 1.- The object of this Regulation is to determine the procedure and principles of the establishment of food irradiation plants, grating, the license to these plants, irradiation of the raw and auxiliary material and processed and semi-processed food materials according to the technical requirements, putting the irradiated foods to the consumption and their control. '

Scope

Article 2.- This Regulation cover the procedure and principles of the irradiation of the food materials and the establishment of the food irradiation plants and the licenses permit, registration, employment, control, import and export of the irradiated foods. Legal base

Article 3.- "This Regulation is prepared based on and according to the provisions of articles 4,5,6,7,12,13 and 15 of the Decree-Law No-560 on the Production, Consumption and Control of the Foods the provisions ofar1icles 4 and 10 of Law No.2690 of Turkish Atomic Energy Authority.

Definitions

Article 4.- The following terms used in this Regulation shall be construed as follows;

Preventing infection by insects: Destroying the liveliness and generation of the insects, larvae and eggs existing in the food stuffs,

Dose: The quantity of the radiation energy absorbed by the unit mass of the irradiated food.

Dosimetry: The measurement of dose or radiation energy absorbed in kGy with dosimeters.

Food irradiation: Irradiation of the foods with the sufficient dose according to the technologic requirement and by a suitable manner.

Food irradiation plant: The building and its facilities processing source, equipments and working systems designed and licensed for irradiation of the food with a suitable irradiation source in the reliable manner.

License for irradiation: The approval of radiation safety issued by Turkish Atomic Energy Authority for the designs, construction and operation of the irradiation plant.

Kilo Gray (kGy): The quantity in kilojoule of the average radiation energy absorbed by I kg of the Irradiated food.

MeV: The energy unit of million electron volt.

Microorganisims: Virus; bacteria, fungi and parasites.

Average dose: The quantity of dose absorbed calculated by averaging of the doses absorbed and the local intensity at the points where the dosimeters is placed on the unit volume of the food of determined mass; the average of the minimum and maximum doses absorbed by the foods the intensity of which is homogeneous.

TAEA: Turkish Atomic Energy Authority

PART II

Food irradiation and Radiation Safety

Principles of Food Irradiation

Article 5- The irradiation of the foods is carried out according to the following principles.

a) The food irradiation operation is carried out in tIe suitable technological and hygienic conditions with the determined irradiation dose for avoiding and preventing the quantities and activities of the microorganisms and biochemical cases causing the spoilage of the foods, extention the shelf life of the foods, control of the ripening period and to obtain the modifications required for the future operations.

b) The food and the packaging material to be irradiated must be in compliance with the provisions of the Turkish Foods Codex Regulation published in Official Journal No.23 172 bis dated 16/11/1997. c)The spoiled foods can not be irradiated for human consumption.

c) The spoiled foods can not be irradiated for human consumption.

d) The general hygenical rules stated in the Turkish Food Codex Regulation shall be observed before, during and after irradiation. The authorized person or responsible of the work place execute the provisions regarding the responsibilities of the work place, of the Regulation regarding the Production Consumption and Control of the Foods, published in Official Journal No.233679 dated 9/06/1998.

e) The radiation dose to be used in food irradiation; is determined by measuring the average dose absorbed by the determined mass unit of the food by the method of dosimeter acceptable internationally according to the properties and to the dose interval required.

f) The installations establish d subject to this regulation shall be obligated to comply with the provisions regarding the radiation safety of the by Law No-85/9727 dated 24/7/1985.

Irradiation dose

Article 6.- The average irradiation dose to be applied to the foods is selected from the suitable limites of the dose for food's group depending to the properties of and according to the technological target. The upper limits of the average dose permitted for the food's groups is given in Annex-I.

Re-irradiation

Article 7.- For the cereals, legumes, dried foods and similar foods with low rate of humidity the irradiation is repeated when necessary for diminishing or destroying the insects and contamination arisen after first irradiation, The re-irradiation is carried out according to Article 6. for the goods containing additive materials irradiated at the rate lass than 5 % or irradiated with the low doses around 1 kGy,  

PART Ill

The Radiation Sources used for Foods Irradiation, Food Irradiation

Plants and Employment, Licensing, Permission and Registration

Sources of Irradiation

Article 8.- The following types of ray are used in the flood irradiation operations:

a) The gamma rays radiated from radio-nucleus sources of closed Cobalt-60 (Co-60) and Cesium - 137

(Cs-137).

b) X - Rays produced by the mechanical sources functioning with an energy of 5 MeV or less;

c) The electrons produced by the mechanical sources functioning with an energy of 10 MeV or less;

Irradiation Plants and Employment.

Article 9.- The Food Irradiation installation operating by using one of the ray sources indicated in Article 8. Shall be constructed with the necessary equipment for this work and suitable for radiation i reliability and hygienically conditions. In the food irradiation installation it is obligatory;

a) A sufficient number of persons whose the training in the matter of food irradiation was approved by TAEA,

b) Keeping and maintaining all operating control parameters and dosimetrical measuring records during foods irradiation operation.

Licensing Permission and Registration

Article 10.- The real persons and legal entities who desire to establish food irradiation installation carry out the following operations:

a) Take the license from T AEA for establishment and operation of the food irradiation installation according to the Regulation on the Reliability of the Gamma and Electron Beam Irradiation Installations issued based to the by- Law of the Radiation Security published in Official Journal No.21964, dated 18/06/1994.

b) Before starting the production's operation of this installation, obtain the working permit from the Ministry of Public Health according to the provisions concerned of the Regulation regarding the Production and Sale Places of the Foods published in Official Journal NO; 22692; dated 10/7/1996 and, and registered to the food work place register established by the Ministry of Public Health.

c) The apply to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs for food irradiation permit with a file containing the license and working persons together with devices and equipments names to be used in the installation and the type of radiation and the method of dosimeter.

The application file is examined by a commission constituted by 6 expert persons whose 3 persons from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural and 3 persons from T AEA, at the end of examination the permit is issued and registration is made for the installation found suitable.

The foods to be irradiated in the registered installation shall be from the foods for which the production permit is obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs according the provisions concerned of the Regulation regarding the Production, Consumption and Control of the Foods published in Official Journal No.23367, dated 9/06/1998. 

PART IV

Ensuring the Quality of the Irradiated Foods and Documenting Ensuring the Quality

Article 11- For ensuring the quality it is necessary to;

a) Keeping the documents and records the process control system and control values regulating the conformity of the food irradiation condition, with the necessary principles,' method and targets,

b) The conformity of the irradiated food and packaging material to the Regulation of Turkish Food Codex,

c) Ensuring the technological aim required aria necessary for the process and quality- of the food to be irradiated, before irradiation, during irradiation and after irradiation,

d) Ensuring the conformity of the application of dosimeter to the international standards.

Documenting

Article 12.- A record is kept and maintained for two control periods at least for each party " the irradiated food. This record contain following information’s;

a) The party number of the operation,

b) Date of irradiation,

c) Quantity and type of the food irradiated,

d) The packaging material and form used during irradiation,

e) The minimum and maximum dose rates measured during irradiation, average and other process control values,

f) The deviation from normal process conditions observed during the irradiation.

Labeling

Article 13.- In addition to the information’s of the part 9 of the Regulation on the Turkish Food Codex, I published in Official Journal No.23 172, dated 16/11/1997, the label must contain the following points;

a) For the irradiated foods whether packaged beforehand or not on the transportation documents to be established the name of the installation authorized to made irradiation, date of irradiation, dose of irradiation and party number,

b) On the packaging of the irradiated and packaged food the international green symbol given in Annex-I, proving that the food is irradiated,

c) If one of the components of the foods is irradiated in the raw or not cooked state, the irradiation dose of this component on the component list,

d) Indication of irradiated food on the transportation document in transport in mass according to the information’s in the paragraphs,(a) and (b),

e) Sticking an indicator on the foods to be irradiated, changing its colour by irradiating; for determination whether the foods are irradiated or not.

Storage

Article 14.- In the Food irradiation installations the foods to be irradiated and irradiated are stored in separate place suitable to the technique.

PART V

Miscellaneous and Last Provisions

Distinguishing of the Irradiated Foods and Determination or the Irradiation Dose

Article 15.- The determination whether a food is irradiated or not and the irradiating dose applied is carried out according to the methods internationally agreed, in the TAEA' s laboratories, or in the laboratory determined jointly by T AEA, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Public Health.

The consumption, import and export or the irradiated foods

Article 16.- During the consumption, control of import and export of the irradiated foods the provisions of the Regulation on the Production, Consumption and Control of the Foods published in Official Journal No.23367, dated 9/06/1998, are applied.

Controls and sanctions

Article 17.- The radiation reliability and irradiation process control of the food irradiation installations are carried out by TAEA, the controls in the scope of articles 4 and 10 of the Decree Law No-560 are carried out by the Ministry of Public Health, the controls within the scope of articles 5,7,9 and 18 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Effective Date

Article 18.- This Regulation comes in effect on the date of its publication.

Execution

Article 19.- The provisions of this Regulation are executed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Public Health and by the President of the Atomic Energy Authority of Turkey. (Official Journal No.23868, dated 6 November 1999)