Richard Ha writes:

On Tuesday, I was in Honolulu and got to see locally grown produce go through the new O‘ahu irradiator as part of the equipment’s first commercial treatment.

It looks like a tall carousel, and automatically lowers units of produce underwater for a certain amount of time and at a specific distance so the irradiation is applied uniformly.

Curry leaves and papaya were part of that first treatment. Other products, such as basil and other in-demand produce, could also be exported using this method.

It’s a good example of how folks worked through environmental and other issues to come up with an acceptable solution.

The irradiator is located at the old Del Monte pineapple facilities, now occupied by the Hawaii Ag Research Center. “Stevie” Whalen, the Center’s leader, has an impressive vision of private and public organizations that will each help the whole.