Use of Nuclear Techniques in Food, Agriculture and Pest Control

The so-called Nuclear Techniques used in agriculture are of two distinct types but both based on the special characteristics of radio-isotopes which give off radiation or on isotopes which are heavier than the normal element. One type of application uses the radiation given off by isotopes to enable the detection of individual atoms in infinitely small amounts of matter. With this technique we can e.g. follow the travels of fertilizer elements in the soil, into and throughout the crop plant or the travels of animal nutrient atoms throughout the animal and their deposition in milk and meat. This has resulted in enormous advances in crop and livestock research. Very minute traces of pesticides and their residues can be detected in food, in plants and animals and in the environment enabling the development of measures to reduce harmful effects