Sri Lanka Atomic Energy Board workshop on gamma irradiation on 9 March

The Sri Lanka Atomic Energy Board (SLAEB) will conduct a workshop and a facility visit on ‘Medical products sterilisation, food preservation, irradiation of packaging materials and many more products using gamma irradiation’ on 9 March from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Sri Lanka Gamma Centre in Biyagama Export Processing Zone.

Gamma irradiation technology is one of the trusted technologies to enhance food quality and food safety. Further it is used to sterilise medical devices and packaging. SLAEB introduced this gamma irradiation technology to Sri Lankan industrialists by establishing the Sri Lanka Gamma Centre (SLGC) in Biyagama Export Processing Zone in 2014 which is now accredited for GMP, ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 standards.

SLAEB is organising the workshop together with a facility visit with two experts from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Lectures on food irradiation and its legal acceptance in global arena and protecting public health by food and medical device irradiation programs will be conducted by Prof. Suresh Pillai, Director, National Centre for Electron Beam Research, Professor in Microbiology and Texas A&M AgriLife Research Faculty Fellow, Texas A&M University. A lecture on irradiation of medical products in global context and other applications will be done by IAEA Radiation Processing Specialist Dr. Sunil Sabharwal. An overview of gamma irradiation and the Sri Lanka Gamma Centre will be given by Samantha Kulatunge, Director of the Centre.

The main services of this centre are sterilisation of disposable medical products, surgical products, cellulosic products, pharmaceuticals and containers, laboratory supplies, cosmetics and sanitary products, biological materials and decontamination of spices, seasonings, dried vegetables, medicinal herbs, Ayurvedic products and health diet supplements. In addition the SLGC can provide services such as quarantine treatment of wooden objects, coir and -based products, pasteurization of frozen/fresh and dried seafood, and sprout inhibition of onions, garlic, and potatoes. This will be a golden opportunity for spice processors, medical products manufacturers/ exporters/importers, tea, herbs and dried food exporters, food industrialists/processors/ exporters, packaging material producers and for researchers. 

As seats are limited interested parties can contact organisers (on 0710677090 – Priyanga, 0777414016/0710677087 – Samantha and 0719204944 – Achala) and reserve a seat. For further details refer SLAEB website www.aeb.gov.lk.