Research and analysis

RIFE 31 General Summary, Radioactivity in Food and the Environment, 2025

Updated 29 October 2026

General summary

Radioactivity is all around us. It occurs naturally in the Earth’s crust, it can be found in the food we eat, the water we drink, as well as the air we breathe. We are also exposed to artificial sources of radioactivity, such as in medical applications used in hospitals and nuclear power. It is a legal requirement to ensure that the radiation exposure from artificial radioactivity, from all sources, is kept as low as reasonably achievable and within the annual 1millisievert limit to protect the public and the environment.

In the UK, the radiation exposure from artificial radioactivity comes from permitted or authorised releases from UK nuclear sites and other sites that use radioactive materials, such as hospitals, research or industrial facilities; these sites are known as non-nuclear sites.

The Radioactivity in Food and the Environment (RIFE) report is published each year by environmental regulators and food standards agencies. This report brings together all the results of monitoring of radioactivity in food and the environment by the RIFE partners (Environment Agency, Food Standards Agency, Food Standards Scotland, Natural Resources Wales, Northern Ireland Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency).

A qualitative comparison can be made between the exposure from artificial and natural sources of radioactivity, which are calculated using a different approach and pathways of exposure to those estimated for people who live or work near nuclear and non-nuclear sites. The UK Health Security Agency has published estimates of exposures to the UK population from naturally occurring and artificial sources of radioactivity UK ionising radiation (UK Health Security Agency, 2025)). The most recent values show that naturally occurring sources, particularly radon gas, accounted for around 84% of the exposure from all sources of radioactivity, with medical radiation contributing around 16%. Artificial radioactivity in the environment, from the nuclear industry and from past testing of nuclear weapons, accounted for less than 0.3% of the exposure to the UK population (see Figure GS). This figure shows the breakdown of the average UK population exposure.

Figure GS. Average UK population exposure from natural and artificial sources of radioactivity, data are rounded to the nearest percent (UK Health Security Agency - radiation and you)

Category	Percentage of total exposure from natural and artificial sources of radioactivity
radon and thoron in the home (from naturally occurring sources)	44
diagnostic medical procedures	16
terrestrial gamma radiation	14
cosmic radiation (non-occupational)	13
intake of naturally occurring radionuclides, excluding radon	10
occupational exposure to natural sources	4.0
other sources	0.3

Headlines from the 2025 RIFE programme are:

For all sites

Exposure to the public from all sources of artificial radioactivity in food and the environment was low and within the legal limit of 1millisievert (mSv) per year^{[footnote 1]}

For the majority of samples and analytical results, between 2024 and 2025 there were no significant changes to the radioactivity measured (excluding naturally occurring radionuclides) in food and the environment

For nuclear sites

In England, people living around the Cumbrian Coast (near Sellafield) were the most exposed from all sources of artificial and natural radioactivity. The exposure in 2025 was approximately 51% of the legal limit.

In Scotland, people living close to the Hunterston site were estimated to be the most exposed from sources of artificial radioactivity. The exposure in 2025 was approximately 2.5% of the legal limit.

In Wales, people living near the Trawsfynydd site were estimated to be the most exposed from sources of artificial radioactivity. The exposure in 2025 was approximately 2.0% of the legal limit.

For other areas

In Northern Ireland, exposure to the public from sources of artificial radioactivity was estimated to be less than 1% of the legal limit.

A survey on the Channel Islands confirmed that the radiation exposure due to discharges from the French fuel reprocessing plant at La Hague and other local sources was estimated to be less than 0.5% of the legal limit.

Food and sources of public drinking water that make up a general diet for people were analysed for radioactivity across the UK. Results show that the radiation exposure from artificial radionuclides in people’s general diet was very small (less than 0.5% of the legal limit) in 2025.

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Highlights: Nuclear fuel production and reprocessing

For nuclear fuel production and reprocessing sites assessed in 2025 the ‘total dose’ for the representative person was 51% (or less) of the annual dose limit.

Capenhurst, Cheshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.18mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Springfields, Lancashire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.010mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Cumbrian coastal area, including Sellafield, Cumbria

‘Total dose’ for the Cumbrian coastal community was 0.51mSv and increased in 2025 compared to 2024.

The highest ‘total dose’ was from seafood, dominated by the effects of historical discharges of naturally occurring radionuclides from the former phosphate processing plant. Historical discharges from the Sellafield site made a lesser contribution.

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Highlights: Nuclear power stations

For nuclear power stations assessed in 2025 the ‘total dose’ for the representative person was 2% (or less) of the annual dose limit.

Berkeley, Gloucestershire and Oldbury, South Gloucestershire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was less than 0.005mSv in 2025 and was unchanged from 2024.

Bradwell, Essex

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was less than 0.005mSv in 2025 and was unchanged from 2024.

Dungeness, Kent

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.010mSv in 2025 and was unchanged from 2024.

Hartlepool, County Durham

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv in 2025 and was unchanged from 2024.

Heysham, Lancashire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.017mSv and increased slightly in 2025 compared to 2024.

Hinkley Point, Somerset

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.011mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Sizewell, Suffolk

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.010mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Chapelcross, Dumfries and Galloway

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv in 2025 and was unchanged from 2024.

Hunterston, North Ayrshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv and increased slightly in 2025 compared to 2024.

Torness, East Lothian

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.010mSv and decreased slightly in 2025 compared to 2024.

Trawsfynydd, Gwynedd

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.015mSv and increased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Wylfa, Isle of Anglesey

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.006mSv in 2025 and decreased compared to 2024.

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Highlights: Research and radiochemical production establishments

For research establishments assessed in 2025 the ‘total dose’ for the representative person was 1% (or less) of the annual dose limit.

For the radiochemical production establishment assessed in 2025 the ‘total dose’ for the representative person was 8% of the annual dose limit.

Dounreay, Highland

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.008mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Grove Centre, Amersham, Buckinghamshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.083mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Harwell, Oxfordshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Winfrith, Dorset

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was less than 0.005mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

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Highlights: Defence establishments

For the defence establishments assessed in 2025 the ‘total dose’ for the representative person was 10% of the annual dose limit.

Aldermaston and Burghfield, Berkshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.10mSv and increased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Barrow, Cumbria

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.066mSv and increased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Derby, Derbyshire

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.006mSv and was similar in 2025 to 2024.

Devonport, Devon

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was less than 0.005mSv and unchanged in 2025 compared to 2024.

Faslane and Coulport, Argyll and Bute

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv and increased in 2025 compared to 2024.

Rosyth, Fife

‘Total dose’ for the representative person was 0.007mSv and decreased in 2025 compared to 2024.

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Highlights: Industrial, solid waste disposal, legacy and other non-nuclear sites

Doses (dominated by the effects of legacy discharges from other sources) increased at the Low Level Waste Repository in 2025.

Doses at solid waste disposal sites were less than 0.5% of the dose limit in 2025.

Doses (dominated by the effects of naturally occurring radionuclides from legacy discharges) increased at Whitehaven in 2025 compared to 2024.

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Highlights: Regional monitoring

Doses for the representative person were approximately 1% (or less) of the annual public dose limit in 2025.

References

UK Health Security Agency, 2025. Ionising radiation exposure of the UK population, published June 2025. UK ionising radiation

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General Summary Footnotes

1. The average individual dose to a member of the UK population from all sources amounts to about 2.6 millisieverts (mSv) per year. This dose is primarily from natural sources of radioactivity. This chart will underestimate doses from nuclear discharges as the average member of the UK Population does not live near a nuclear discharge point. ↩