Pilot investigation of food products contamination by caesium-137 in selected areas of Ukraine affected by the Chernobyl catastrophe in 1986

The radioactivity released as a result of the explosions of the No.4 Reactor at the Chernobyl NPP plant in 1986 caused a number of severe problems affecting many countries worldwide. One of the greatest concerns was the release, transport and subsequent deposition of caesium-137, a long-lived radionuclide (half life T1/2 = 30.1 y), which is able to pass through the food chain and accumulate in milk, fish and other food products (Travnikova et al. 2004, Schwaiger et al. 2004, Forberg et al. 1994, Voors & Weers 1989). Over the years following the accident, the Ukrainian government undertook regular analyses of foodstuffs produced in contaminated areas and these data were published in the reports of the Ministry of Emergencies and Affairs of Population Protection from Consequences of Chernobyl Catastrophe (see: MESU 2008). For the last two years this monitoring has not been performed, and accordingly an important long-term data set is no longer being added to.