Stormstown Dispatch

There was recent news item about radioactive material contaminating frozen shrimp that was being shipped to Walmart stores.

The FDA recalled the shrimp after finding elevated levels of Cesium-137 in shipping containers at 4 U.S. ports. At least one shrimp sample contained a higher-than-expected level of Cs-137. It is likely that radiation was due to contaminated containers, not because of contaminated food products. The origin of the shrimp was Indonesia.

Cs-137 as a flexible, soft, and silvery-white metal that liquifies near room temperature. The radioisotope is a byproduct of nuclear reactions. Trace amounts of Cs-137 are detectable around the world in our food, soil, and air,

I decided to test a package of frozen shrimp I bought at a local Wegmans store. First, I checked the background reading: 0.07 microSieverts per hour, or 0.007 millirems per hour.

I then checked the shrimp package. I detected no significant change from the background reading.

The results are anecdotal, indeed, but interesting.