§ Mr. ButlerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the presence of benzene in irradiated beef.
§ Mr. MacleanBenzene is present quite naturally in a wide range of common foods. Information on its presence in irradiated food is limited to one report on beef, which found minute quantities to be present. The levels reported were not only well below those occurring naturally in other foods but were found in a study using a much higher dose level than is proposed for the commercial treatment of foodstuffs.