FDA summons consumer input

The agency has until March 2002 to issue final regulatory labeling changes for irradiated products. In comments to the Office of Management and Budget, both NFPA and Grocery Manufacturers of America strongly supported the use of consumer focus groups as a means of discovering what might promote consumer acceptance of this food safety process. GMA noted that the food industry has been actively promoting irradiation as a means of combating foodborne illness but that “consumer acceptance has been severely limited by the term ‘irradiation.’” By targeting consumer perceptions, the food industry hopes the process will become as accepted as pasteurization and microwaving.