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Y. HARUVY, Applied Radiation Division, Soreq Nuclear Research Center, Soreq NRC, Yavne, 81800, Israel

Packaging of food to be pasteurized or sterilized by irradiation is an art often based on selecting traditional polymers and packaging technology, ignoring many novel polymers and techniques that are steadily evolving.

Consumer demands for unquestionably safe and reliable packaging for the food, however, are constantly increasing. Nowadays, with our current knowledge of polymer chemistry, it is possible to select radiation-appropriate polymeric packaging materials based on their radiation durability. Furthermore, it is possible to validate experimentally that newly selected materials are safer and more reliable than those previously approved.

A new generation of food packaging materials for radiation processing, therefore, should be based on the best available knowledge of, and technological experience with, polymeric materials, as well as on the currently practiced high standards of quality, safety, and reliability associated with their use, similar to the very advanced art of “packaging” satellites and space vehicles. Indeed, polymer-aluminum-polymer multiple-ply flexible ensembles and laminates serve successfully in both arenas: food-packaging and space-packaging alike.

In both arenas, PET and other highly aromatic polymers play a major role. The unique stability and cleanliness features of these polymers is discussed in relation to their ability to function reliably as packaging materials.