Sprouts are most often consumed raw; thus cooking is not used to prevent contamination from pathogens. High microbial counts on clover seeds and its sprouts are the primary factor for a short shelf life of products and potentially present pathogens may cause human illness outbreak.
In this study, clover seeds were germinated with four treatments. T1 (Dipping in 20g/L Calcium hypochlorite for 20 min. +Washing with NaCL then, soaking in 2000 ppm NaCl, 12 hr. / 3 days), T2 (Dipping in Calcium hypochlorite for 20 min. then, washing tap water, 12 hr. / 3 days), T3 (Dipping in tap water + Washing by NaCL, 12 hr. / 3 days) and T4 (Dipping in tap water + washing by tap water, 12 hr. / 3 days).
Trail 2, treated clover seeds in T1 and T4 were low and highly contaminated with microbial load. Clover sprouts were exposed to irradiation doses at 1, 2 and 3 kGy, to study the effect of gamma radiation on quality. Main trail, T4 was modified to dipping seeds in sterilized tap water and washing by sterilized tap water, for 12 hr. /3 days. Sprouts were exposed to irradiation doses and stored at 9°C and quality parameters were evaluated during storage.
Clover sprouts can be treated with gamma radiation, a no thermal food process, to reduce microbial load and forborne pathogens and to increase shelf life. After irradiation at dose of 2 kGy, the total bacterial count decreased from 5.0x107 to 6.0x103 cfu/g, and the total coliform counts decreased from 1100 to 3 cfu/g E. coli count from 2.9x102 to  3 and Staphylococcus aureus count went down from 4.5x104 to 100 cfu/g.
These results showed clover seeds germinated in sterilized tap water and irradiated at 2 kGy improved microbial safety of clover sprouts without affecting germination, chemical and quality during storage was extended to 15 day. Irradiated sprouts had similar overall acceptability quality as the non-irradiated one.