Foodborne illness is a major health concern for consumers. Food distributors take a variety of precautions to ensure the safety of our food, such as storing food in refrigerated or frozen conditions or by using modified packaging. However, the application of low dose ionizing radiation (gamma radiation) has been used more frequently to prevent microbial spoilage of various foods. Currently, the FDA has approved the use of gamma irradiation for beef, pork, chicken, shellfish, and crustaceans, to name a few. Another food group that could benefit from the use of this treatment is fish. Fish contain an assortment of microbes in their gills, skin, and gut that work to metabolize the fish after it’s been caught which quickly leads to spoilage. The use of ionizing radiation can prolong the shelf life of fish by killing these microbes. Before this type of treatment can be applied, it is important to assess its impact on the nutritional components in this food source, namely Vitamin D. Fish are one of the few natural sources of Vitamin D in food, supplying nearly the recommended daily amount in a single serving. In this study varying doses of gamma radiation (0-4 kGy) were applied to filets of high fat finfish (salmon and trout) in chilled and frozen conditions. The fish samples were then saponified overnight and the Vitamin D was extracted using liquid-liquid extraction and analyzed by LC-MS. The amount of vitamin D3 and 25-hydroxy-vitamin D3 in irradiated samples was compared to controls to assess whether low dose gamma radiation caused a significant change in concentration.

Effect of gamma irradiation on vitamin D content in high fat finfish

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