Irradiated shellfish: identification by photostimulated luminescence

The irradiation of food is a technology used in the industry to prevent the deterioration of foodstuff in some countries. The European Community legislation states that each Member State must carry out annual checks on the products during commercialisation. The Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle regioni Lazio e Toscana (Rome, Italy) has developed and validated the screening method of photostimulated luminescence UNI EN 13751:2009 to identify irradiated shellfish. A total of 30 tests of shellfish samples, consisting of 22 certified as irradiated and 8 not-irradiated samples, were performed. The validation procedure was based on sensitivity and specificity; the compatibility between the screening method and the reference standard EN 13751:2009 was evaluated. Data were processed: 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity were obtained. Results obtained in our laboratory were perfectly compatible with the reference standard. For this reason, the method has been validated and proved to be suitable for its intended use.