UNDERSTANDING MICROORGANISMS

Microorganisms are found everywhere. They are not visible to the naked eye. Microorganisms
can come from food, water, animals, humans, or objects. Food contaminated with
microorganisms may look, smell, and taste fine, even when it’s not safe. Because of
this, it is important to know about microorganisms and how to control them.

Some microorganisms are beneficial to humans. We need them to make things like cheese,
bread, yogurt, wine, and beer.

Other microorganisms can be harmful to humans and cause disease. These harmful
microorganisms are called pathogens.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF MICROORGANISMS:

• Viruses
• Parasites (protozoa and helminths)
• Fungi (moulds and yeasts)
• Bacteria

Viruses

• Pathogens that multiply inside our own cells

• Not living, but can “survive” for a long time on surfaces
• Do not grow in food
• Very small, most cannot be seen with a regular microscope
• Illness occurs very quickly and usually lasts only a short time
(1-2 days)
• Very contagious, often cannot be treated, dehydration in high-
risk groups common
• Carrier state common
• Human hands commonly contaminate food so hand washing important
• Another common source is seafood and shellfish from contaminated water
• Examples of viruses carried in food: hepatitis A, norovirus, rotavirus

1
 Parasites

• Feed off humans and animals, live in or on body, and often excreted in feces
• Range in size from tiny, microscopic single-celled organisms (protozoa) to multi-
cellular worms (helminths) visible to the naked eye
• Illnesses they cause can range from mild discomfort to serious illness and possibly
death
• Like viruses, parasites do not grow in food, they reproduce in the tissues of other
organisms (hosts)
• Transferred through consumption of fecal-contaminated water and food
• Parasites live longer than bacteria and therefore symptoms persist longer
• Parasites, especially protozoa, are harder to remove from water than bacteria
• Cooking to proper temperatures and boiling untreated water for at
least one minute is best way to control parasites
• Most parasites transferred to humans through:
 Contaminated water or food washed with contaminated water
 Eating undercooked meat from a contaminated animal
 Cross-contamination
• Examples of common protozoa that cause food-borne illness: Giardia, Cyclospora,
Cryptosporidium, Toxoplasmosis
• Examples of common helminths that cause food-borne illness: Trichinella, Taenia
saginata/Taenia solium (tapeworms)

Fungi (Moulds and Yeasts)

• Can grow at refrigerator temperatures

• Yeasts don’t usually cause food-borne illness, usually only spoil food
• Some moulds produce toxins called mycotoxins
• Toxin forms under the surface of the food, can’t scrape off
• Hard cheese, salamis, and firm fruits and vegetables can be saved, but
most mouldy food should be thrown away
• Transferred from place to place by air currents and carriers (people,
equipment, food)
• Examples of moulds that make poisonous toxins:
 Aflatoxin – often found in nuts, peanuts and peanut butter
 Ochratoxin A – often found in grain, coffee and wine

2
Bacteria

• Bacteria can be beneficial or harmful for

humans
• Example of good bacteria: probiotics in
yogurt
• Examples of bad bacteria: Salmonella, E.
coli, Campylobacter, Listeria, Botulism,
Bacillus cereus, Staph aureus.
• Pathogenic bacteria cause food-borne
illness in one of two ways:
1) Bacterial infection, or
2) Bacterial intoxication

1) Bacterial Infection:

• Caused by eating food contaminated with bacterial pathogens

• Bacteria multiply in food and multiply further inside intestine
• Start of symptoms slow (usually 1 to 3 days). Sometimes up to 10 days.
Sometimes even up to 2 months
• Amount and type of bacteria eaten determines start of symptoms
• Usually results in (bloody) diarrhea, cramps, and fever
• Examples of bacteria that cause infection:
 Salmonella (ex. chicken, eggs)
 E-coli (ex. ground beef)
 Campylobacter (ex. processed chicken, meat)
 Shigella (ex. veggies)

2) Bacterial Intoxication:

• Sometimes it’s not the bacteria itself that makes a person sick, but what the
bacteria produces
• All bacteria produce a waste product, but some can be toxic to humans called toxin
• Toxin can come from bacteria growing in food or from bacteria on a food handler
• Illness is caused by eating food contaminated with toxin or toxin-
producing bacteria
• Not all toxin is destroyed by cooking so temperature-abused food needs
to be thrown away
• Start of symptoms is very quick (1-6 hours), illness can last up to 2 weeks
• These illnesses can be very serious.
• Vomiting and nausea are most common symptoms
• Other symptoms can include: paralysis, respiratory failure, and death
3
• Examples: botulism (home-canned veggies), Staph aureus (ex. ham), Bacillus
cereus (ex. rice, gravy)

How Bacteria Grow

1. One bacteria divide to form 2 new bacteria

2. Divide as quick as 20 minutes under right

conditions

3. Some bacteria can enter a spore state where they do not grow, but are still alive!

Spores
• During stressful conditions, some bacteria can protect
themselves by forming a protective outer shell called a spore

• A spore is the resting stage of some live bacteria

• Spores can survive for months in unfavourable conditions. When favourable

conditions return, bacteria growth and dividing resumes. Favourable conditions
consist of high protein and moisture levels, sufficient time within the temperature
range of 4°C to 60°C (40°F to 140°F), a neutral pH, and sufficient oxygen or non-
oxygen levels depending on the organism

• Bacterial spores are not destroyed by usual methods of cooking. High heat in
excess of 120°C (248°F) is required to destroy spores

• Spores are also resistant to many disinfectants

• Botulism is an example of a spore-forming bacteria that produces extremely

dangerous toxin

Carriers
• People can have an infection without showing any symptoms. These people can
transfer germs they have into food they’re preparing

• Frequent and proper hand washing is all the more important due to the lack of signs
of illness in carriers

4
WHO GETS SICK?
There are a number of reasons that can make a person who eats contaminated food more or
less likely to get sick. Some of these are:

1) Immune status
Groups at increased risk of food-borne illness:
• Young children
• The elderly
• People with weakened immune systems
• Pregnant women

2) How many organisms you ate

There has to be enough bacteria to make it through the stomach to the intestines for a person
to get sick. This is called the ‘infectious dose’. Different pathogens have different infectious
doses. Usually the higher the infectious dose consumed, the faster and more severe the
symptoms If a person’s immune system is compromised, it’ll take even less.

3) Type of organisms you ate

Some pathogens cause vomiting within ½ hour, others cause diarrhea after several days.
There is much variation in the timing of symptoms depending on the organism eaten.

WHAT BACTERIAL PATHOGENS NEED TO GROW

FAT TOM!

5
 Food: Pathogens need nutrients in order to grow. These nutrients come
from water and protein in food. Foods high in protein include animal
products such as meat, chicken, diary, eggs, and cheese. Unprocessed,
whole foods are also high in protein. Pathogens can also use carbohydrates
as a source of energy. Foods high in carbohydrates include potatoes, rice,
and pasta.

Acidity: Pathogens grow best in foods with little or no acidity. The pH

A
scale ranges from 0 (acidic) to 14 (alkalinic). A pH of 7 is neutral. Each rise
or fall in the pH scale by an interval of 1 is equal to 10 times (1 log). For
example, a food with a pH of 5 is 10 times more acidic than a food with a pH
of 6.

Foods with a pH between 4.5 and 7.5 is ideal for pathogens. Foods in this
range include fish/seafood, meat, chicken, egg yolks, milk, and tofu. Sour or
acidic foods have a pH below 4.5. This includes most fruits. Pathogens won’t
grow in foods in this range.

Be careful when home canning foods. A boiling-water canner does not kill
bacterial spores during the canning process. Other protective measures should
be taken to ensure spores do not grow in the canned food (e.g. Acidification).

Temperature: Pathogens grow very quickly in foods that are held in the
Danger Zone between 4°C-60° (40°F-140°F). When working with hazardous
foods at room temperature, work quickly and carefully. Keep hot foods hot
and cold foods cold. Freezing may not kill bacteria, but does prevent
their growth.

Time: Pathogens need time to grow. If foods are in the Danger Zone for

T
two hours or longer, they will grow to levels high enough to potentially
make someone sick. Time accumulates while food is held in the Danger
Zone; the ‘2 Hour Rule’ never resets. Hazardous food must be thrown out if
held at room temperature longer than two hours.

6
 Oxygen: Pathogens can grow with or without oxygen. Aerobic bacteria

O
require oxygen to grow. Anaerobic bacteria require little to no oxygen to
grow.

Moisture: Pathogens need water to grow. Water activity (Aw) measures

M
the free water available in food for microorganisms to use. Foods with
higher Aw (i.e. moist foods with low solutes) are at risk for rapid pathogen
growth. Examples of foods that contain high Aw levels include meats, fish,
dairy, eggs, cheese and cut vegetables. Foods with lower Aw are less at risk
for rapid pathogen growth. Examples of low Aw foods include baked goods,
crackers, peanut butter, jams, beef jerky, dried fruit and powdered milk.

Foods can be made safer if its free water available is lowered. For example,
by:
 Adding salts, sugars, and spices
 Freezing
 Dehydrating
 Cooking

Low Aw does not kill pathogens; it only keeps them from growing. Some
pathogens (e.g. Salmonella) can survive in dry foods and become potentially
hazardous when the food becomes wet.

HAZARDOUS FOOD

It is important that food handlers are able to recognize hazardous foods as these foods have
all the things that pathogenic bacteria need to multiply quickly and make someone sick.
When working with hazardous foods at room temperature, work quickly and carefully!

Hazardous foods have all three of these characteristics:

1. High in Protein
2. High in Moisture
3. Neutral pH (between pH of 4.5 to 7.5)

Hazardous foods include meat, dairy, fish, eggs, cooked vegetables (ex. rice, baked
potatoes), some raw vegetables (ex. bean sprouts, garlic in oil), and some raw fruits (ex. cut
melons).

Shelf-stable products like commercially canned foods are not hazardous foods.

7
 Examples of Microorganisms Causing Food-borne Illness:

Pathogen Signs and Symptoms Incubation Period Food Involved

Anisakis simplex Abdominal cramps, pain, 12 hours to several Salt-water fish
(infection) vomiting, coughing days
Bacillus cereus Nausea, abdominal pain, Up to 24 hours Cereal products, rice,
(toxico-infection) diarrhea, vomiting custards and sauces,
meatloaf
Campylobacter jejuni Diarrhea (sometimes 2 to 5 days Raw milk, poultry, beef
(infection) bloody), severe abdominal liver, raw clams,
pain, fever, anorexia, contaminated water
headache, vomiting
Clostridium botulinum Vertigo, double vision, 18 to 36 hours Home-canned low-acid
(intoxication) difficulty swallowing, food, garlic and oil
speaking and breathing, mixtures, vacuum-packed
muscular weakness, fish, fermented fish eggs,
respiratory paralysis. fish, marine mammals
Gastrointestinal symptoms
may precede neurological
symptoms. Frequently
fatal.
Clostridium perfringens Abdominal pain, diarrhea 8 to 22 hours Cooked meat, poultry,
(toxico-infection) gravy, sauces and soups
Cryptosporidium Severe diarrhea, low-grade 1 to 12 days Any food product that was
(infection) fever and severe intestinal touched by a
distress contaminated person or
contaminated water
Escherichia coli O157:H7 Severe abdominal pain, 24 to 72 hours Soft unpasteurized
(toxico-infection) diarrhea (sometimes cheese, contaminated
bloody), nausea, vomiting, water and any
fever, chills, headache, undercooked animal-
muscular pain, bloody urine source foods, especially
rare hamburger
Giardiasis lamblia Abdominal pain, diarrhea, 1 week Water, raw vegetables and
(infection) fever, cramps fruits
Hepatitis A (infection) Fever, anorexia, nausea, 15 to 50 days Shellfish, any food
abdominal pain, jaundice contaminated by hepatitis
viruses, hepatitis virus A
from feces, urine, blood, or
infected humans and other
primates, contaminated
water
Listeria monocytogenes Nausea, vomiting, stomach 1 to 70 days Unpasteurized milk, soft
(infection) cramps, diarrhea, cheeses, undercooked
headache, constipation, poultry, prepared meats,
fever unwashed raw vegetables
Norovirus (infection) Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, 24 to 72 hours Contaminated water, food
abdominal pain or food surface
Salmonella (infection) Abdominal pain, diarrhea, 6 to 72 hours, usually Poultry, meat and their
chills, fever, nausea, 12 to 36 hours products, egg products,
vomiting other contaminated food,

8
 feces of infected humans
and other animals

Shigella (infection) Diarrhea (sometimes 12 to 50 hours Moist prepared foods,

bloody), abdominal cramps, especially salads (potato,
chills, fever, dehydration tuna, macaroni), raw fruits
and vegetables, raw milk
and dairy products, poultry
Staphylococcus Nausea, vomiting, 2 to 4 hours Ham, meat, poultry,
(intoxication) abdominal pain, diarrhea cream-filled pastry, food
mixtures, leftover foods
Trichinella (infection) Abdominal pain, vomiting, 1 to 2 days for Pork, bear meat, and
nausea, fever, swelling gastrointestinal walrus flesh
around eyes, muscular illness; other
pain, chills, laboured symptoms occur
breathing within 2 to 4 weeks
Yersinia (infection) Watery diarrhea, vomiting, 24 to 48 hours Meats (especially pork,
abdominal pain, fever, beef and lamb), tofu,
headache, sore throat; may oysters, fish, ice cream,
mimic appendicitis fish, powdered milk and
raw (unpasteurized) milk,
raw vegetables, and soy
products