Microbiological quality of commercial white ginseng was examined, together with investigation on its water absorption pattern and radiosensitivity of molds isolated from the samples. Comparative effects of phosphine fumigation and gamma irradiation on microbial control and disinfestation of the samples packed in a commercial laminated film and stored for six months at ambient(20oC, 70% RH) and accelerated(40oC, 90% RH) conditions were studied. Commercial white ginseng was contaminated with coliforms by 103~104CFU/g and molds by 102~104CFU/g and thus decontamination process was required for hygienic quality and storage stability. Phosphine fumigation showed no sterilizing effects on microbes contaminated, while gamma irradiation at around 5kGy was effective for decontaminating microorganisms, showing D10 values of 0.48~0.60kGy for isolated molds. Even though the storage insects, Plodia interpuctella Hubner and Lasioderma serricorne(cigarette beetle) were easily destroyed by phosphine fumigation, gamma irradiation less than 5kGy was found effective for both purposes to improve biological quality of stored white ginseng, thereby extending the storage life of packed samples resulting from increased critical moisture content by about 1%(Aw 0.76).