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Food Spoilage

Food spoilage can be caused by natural decay within the food itself or contamination by microorganisms. Natural decay is caused by moisture loss or the action of enzymes through oxidation, browning, or ripening. The main microorganisms that cause contamination are bacteria, moulds, and yeasts. Food can be contaminated during handling if proper hygiene and food safety practices are not followed, and bacteria can grow if foods are improperly stored or cooked. Preventing spoilage requires proper cleaning, cooking, storage, and avoiding cross-contamination.

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488 views3 pages

Food Spoilage

Food spoilage can be caused by natural decay within the food itself or contamination by microorganisms. Natural decay is caused by moisture loss or the action of enzymes through oxidation, browning, or ripening. The main microorganisms that cause contamination are bacteria, moulds, and yeasts. Food can be contaminated during handling if proper hygiene and food safety practices are not followed, and bacteria can grow if foods are improperly stored or cooked. Preventing spoilage requires proper cleaning, cooking, storage, and avoiding cross-contamination.

Uploaded by

Naomi Olympio
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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TOPIC: FOOD SPOILAGE

Learning Objectives: at the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
 Define food spoilage
 Mention 3 factors responsible for food spoilage
 State 3 different ways of preventing food spoilage
Keywords: Spoilage, Micro-Organisms, Bacteria, Moulds.
Food spoilage is undesirable changes taking place in the food which
eventually leads to its rejection. Food spoilage can be caused by two main
factors:
1. Natural decay within the food itself
2. Contamination by microscopic forms of life (microorganism)
Natural decay
Natural decay in food is the result of:
1. Moisture loss
2. The action of enzymes
Moisture loss is most easily demonstrated in vegetables and fruit, which
contain large amounts of water.
Action of enzymes:
Enzymes speed up the process of food decay by breaking down the tissues
and components of the food in different ways, including:
1. Oxidation
2. Browning
3. Ripening
Contamination by micro-organisms
Micro-organisms are microscopic plants or animals, many of which are
single-called. Microbiology is the study of such organisms.
The main micro-organisms responsible for the contamination of food are:
1. Bacteria
2. Moulds
3. Yeasts
Food poisoning
Bacteria can be transferred to food by several means, including:
1. Using the same utensils to serve contaminated food and other foods.
2. Careless attention to personal hygiene while handling food, e.g. not
washing hands after visiting the toilet, touching nose while preparing
food.
3. Leaving skin infections and cuts uncovered while preparing food.
4. Coughing, sneezing, or spitting while preparing food.
5. Incomplete cleansing of food utensils and serving dishes
6. Pests, e.g. houseflies, cockroaches, beetles, certain moths.
7. Rodents, e.g. rats, mice.
8. Household pets, e.g. dogs, cats, hamsters.
9. Infected or diseased cattle and dairy cows
10. Contaminated water supply
11. Soil and dust.
Once bacteria have been transferred to a food, they will grow and multiply
under the following conditions:
1. Incomplete thawing and cooking of certain foods, e.g poultry, pork.
2. Holding cooked foods, e.g. chicken, shellfish, at room temperature
before serving.
3. Incomplete or repeated cooking of leftover food.
4. Careless storage of food.
Food contamination from other sources
Food can become contaminated by other agents beside micro-organisms,
e.g.
1. Chemicals
2. Radiation
3. Pollution
Chemicals: chemicals are used in modern food production for a variety of
reasons with the aim of obtaining good supplies of high-quality food.
I. Insecticides, pesticides, fungicides, and weed killers are used to
protect crops from attack by various organisms and plants.
II. Antibiotics are given to cattle, pigs, and sheep to prevent them from
contracting diseases which would affect their health or their ability to
produce
Radiation: nuclear power stations are carefully controlled, because if
radioactive material was allowed to leak out, food and water supplies
would become polluted.
Pollution: if industrial waste is poured into rivers and the sea, the chemicals
and metals it contains are taken in by fish and other animal which drink the
water.

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