Food and agriculture Food irradiation makes progress

About a quarter of the world's food production is lost after harvesting, even though a number of food preservation methods are readily available. Losses occur especially in the tropical regions where most developing countries are situated: perhaps because the available food preservation technologies do not function efficiently in such environments, or because they do not lend themselves to the habits of food consumption in most developing countries. People in such countries are accustomed to buying fresh food for immediate consumption at home. They would welcome any new technology which would keep food fresh for a longer time.