CHICAGO -- Supervalu Inc., Minneapolis, Minn., took a large step into the slowly evolving marketplace for irradiated foods when it announced plans to begin stocking its shelves with unspecified products by early July, 2000.
Speaking at the annual convention here of the Food Marketing Institute, Washington, Dave Wiemer, corporate director of quality assurance, said the introduction will be accompanied by an intensive, multifaceted consumer-education campaign about the various pros and cons surrounding the irradiation issue. To that end, he said the giant wholesaler/retailer would approach the matter through an "analysis of facts vs. emotion."
"Many things [customers] don't understand, [they] come to fear," said Wiemer, who outlined and explained several benefits of selling irradiated food at Supervalu, as well as several concerns. "We need to move along the path of understanding."
Acknowledging that Supervalu shares concerns with many other retailers in regard to consumer reaction to irradiated products, Wiemer said these stumbling blocks can be overcome if operators are willing to invest the time and effort required of a sincere education initiative that covers all aspects of the process, including a frank discussion of perceived environmental dangers.
At the same time, retailers must be careful not to use the introduction of irradiated goods as a type of competitive marketing tool, he said. Consumers should see this new process for what it is -- a means of providing shoppers with safer product -- and nothing more. Supervalu will always offer its consumers a choice between irradiated and convential products, said Wiemer.
"We will not back the consumer into a corner," he noted.
To prepare consumers for the arrival of irradiated products on Supervalu members' shelves, Wiemer said the company plans to alert the media, provide sampling of irradiated products at state fairs throughout the coming months and develop in-store brochures to be placed near all irradiated products. An example of one potential brochure was shown to have a radura prominently displayed within its pages.
Wiemer said that the operator's education strategy will place great emphasis on food safety and pathogen control, citing research showing that the cold pasteurization process can reduce foodborne pathogens that cause illness. It also will serve to highlight the retailer's and food industry's commitment to food safety.
"The meat industry, especially, is desperate for enhanced credibility, and this is a step in that direction," said Wiemer.
Literature will also point out that many highly regarded agencies across the country, such as the American Medical Association and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, endorse irradiation. Such approval helps to validate the procedure and could make irradiated products more credible with the public and within the food industry, he added. For retailers, it can reduce the number of food recalls and the expense associated with them, he said.
The taste of irradiated product has also been mentioned as a consumer concern, and some shoppers polled in past surveys have said they fear items treated with the process acquire a change in texture, appearance or taste. Wiemer cited research that determined beef patties irradiated at a lower temperature, and then frozen, do not get tough or change color, as first thought.
Similarly, the irradiation process has less of an impact on the environment than most conventional methods, and results in reduced fumigation, in the case of produce, he said. Though Supervalu is emphasizing food safety in its pro-irradiation message to shoppers, Wiemer was quick to point out that they shouldn't confuse irradiation with a guarantee that the item is 100%-free of pathogens. Instead, consumers need to learn that irradiation should be considered a process of contamination reduction, not elimination.
"Irradiated product is not sterile product, it is simply food safety enhancement," he said. "Just because our cars now have airbags doesn't mean we can just jump in and not wear our seat belt."
Wiemer even offered a preview of some irradiated products soon to be stocked by Supervalu, and passed around irradiated papaya, rambutan and strawberry samples. According to Wiemer, neither papaya nor rambutan would be available in the mainland United States without the irradiation process.
Wiemer added that the initial cost of irradiated products may be slightly higher than standard due to the "extra step," but predicted that production costs will be reduced in the future as more and more processing facilities integrate irradiation equipment. Nevertheless, the next few months will prove to be a vital period for the practice and its acceptance by major retailers, said Wiemer.
"Because of the ruling that came down in December, I think we'll see [irradiated products] begin to show up in markets this summer," said Wiemer, referring to the ruling by the U.S. Department of Agriculture last year approving the use of irradiation on red meat [see "Irradiation Approved by Government for Meat," SN, Dec. 20, 1999]. "It's just that everybody is at a different point in the execution phase right now."
