SureBeam Opens Irradiation Facility

Californians might get their first taste of irradiated fresh ground beef in coming months.

San Diego-based SureBeam Corp., a maker of electronic germ-zapping equipment, opened an irradiation service center in Vernon on Thursday for California’s huge meat and produce industries.

The 32,000-square-foot plant--the third of its kind in the nation--would be able to process 300 million pounds of food annually, starting with packaged hamburger and ultimately produce and cooked foods, if those uses are approved by federal regulators.

SureBeam’s process exposes food to controlled levels of ionizing radiation from electrons to kill germs. And in some cases, the company uses radiation from X-rays.

SureBeam hasn’t signed any major customers for the center, at least none that company officials would talk about.

But analysts expect the firm to eventually treat meat for a number of regional supermarket and fast-food chains that want to protect their products, and themselves, against the threat of E. coli and other dangerous germs.

“They don’t want to handle recalls,” said analyst Stephen Levenson of Gerard Klauer Mattison in New York. “They want to insulate themselves from the liability.”

Only a few large companies are buying irradiated meat, mostly on a limited basis.

The SureBeam center shouldn’t lack for business, company officials said.

“[California] is No. 1 in growing ... and No. 2 in meat processing,” said Larry Oberkfell, SureBeam chairman and chief executive. “We have a lot of customers that are nationally based that have plants in the West.”

SureBeam shares fell 1 cent to $2.44 on Nasdaq.