When there are reports of contaminated food, why is it always with E. Coli? Why aren’t other organisms more common, and/or why is E.Coli so good at growing on our food?
In: Biology
E Coli, quite uniquely, is one of the few bacteria found in animals intestinal tract that is capable of surviving outside of the body in a high oxygen environment (most bacteria either require a environment with a lot of oxygen, or a little oxygen, but few can survive in both). So, when fecal matter comes into contact with food that we want to eat (lettuce, meat, etc), most of the bacteria in that sample will die relatively quickly, where E coli will be able to survive. It makes it much more difficult to kill than other fecal associated bacteria
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