system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Could a refrigerator be replaced by a chamber that periodically irradiates food?

So a refrigerator keeps food cold to inhibit bacterial/fungal growth and I know that some foods like fruit are irradiated before transport to increase shelf life. My question is if instead of keeping food cold, we had a radiation chamber that would periodically turn on to kill any foreign contaminants, would that be more or less effective than refrigeration? Does refrigeration protect against food spoilage that isn't caused by biological contamination? Would irradiation be more or less effective at inhibiting bacterial and fungal growth? Would radiation cause adverse health effects once the food was eaten?
gpt
It would inhibit a lot of bacterial growth, which is a major cause of spoilage, but do nothing with the other major one, oxidation. You have to remember that we are living in an environment with a highly reactive, somewhat toxic compound that slowly burns/rusts many things it comes into contact with, oxygen. It is why butter becomes rancid and why fruit becomes discolored.

Another effect, desiccation, would also be negatively affected. Basically, since fridges fundamentally affects all chemistry, they are the most economical way to keep a variety of food unspoiled for longer.