What testing does the Agency do to ensure levels of radioactivity in food from around nuclear sites do not cause a risk to health?
The Agency has a comprehensive monitoring programme looking at the concentrations of up to 45 different radionuclides per sample in a variety of foodstuffs. The range of radionuclides studied depends on what is known to be discharged by certain nuclear sites or is of particular importance in the diet of local consumers. In addition, testing is also carried out to determine if there are any unexpected radionuclides present. Milk samples are taken weekly from around 100 dairy farms close to nuclear sites and local crops, fruit and vegetable samples are taken at harvest time. Meat and other samples are taken from animals close by the sites and fish and seafood are sampled from local fisheries.
