Question

how does food processing destroy or alter the organism that makes up the original food products ?

Answer 1

Food irradiation is the process of treating food with a specific dosage of ionizing radiation.[1] This treatment slows or halts spoilage by retarding enzymic action or destroying microorganisms and it can also inactivate foodborne pathogenic organisms (reducing the risk of food borne illness). Further applications include sprout inhibition, delay of ripening, increase of juice yield, and improvement of re-hydration. Irradiation is also used to prevent the spread of invasive insect species that could be associated with fresh produce (e.g. fruit fly pests).