Scientists have named the dirtiest item in the kitchen

Many people think that the dirtiest kitchen attribute, even for neat owners, is a trash can. However, in the room where food is prepared, you can find many items that you don’t want to touch. For example, the same worn sponges for washing dishes lying on the sink. And yet the dirtiest item in the kitchen was not them, nor the lid of the slop pail. It is very difficult to suspect a shelf with seasonings of something bad. However, a study published in the journal Journal of Food Protection found that small jars of spices were “unexpected culprits in the spread of disease.” Told about it portal InoSMI on Thursday, March 9th.

The factor that makes condiment jars the dirtiest place in the kitchen has to do with what is scientifically called cross-contamination or contamination. Its essence is that microbes are transferred from one object or substance to another.

The study found that while other surfaces in the kitchen showed signs of contamination in less than 20% of cases, spice jars turned out to be such a source in almost 50% of checks. “Our study has shown that any spice container you touch when cooking raw meat can be cross-contaminated,” said study co-author Donald Schaffner. “You have to remember this during and after cooking.”

The scientists decided to test the hypothesis of cross-contamination during cooking by conducting an experiment with volunteers. The researchers asked them to make turkey burger patties. The participants in the experiment did not know that the organizers of the experiment were studying their actions for food safety until the end of the experiment. To mimic the movement of pathogens in the kitchen, scientists “infected” turkey meat with a bacteriophage called MS2. It was this microorganism that served as a “safe” label. The fact is that bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria, but do not affect humans in any way. After the volunteers finished cooking, the researchers took swabs from kitchen utensils, sinks, tables, cabinet handles, faucets, and other surfaces touched by study participants during the experiment. Then all collected materials were checked for the presence of MS2.

The researchers found that in 48% of cases, it was the spice jars that were “infected” with the bacteriophage MS2. This came as a surprise to the experimenters themselves. “We were surprised because we had never seen data on spice jar contamination before,” Schaffner said.

Thus, in the course of a scientific study, it was found that spice containers are the “dirtiest” items in the kitchen. The list of other hazardous surfaces in the kitchen also included the refrigerator handle, trash can lid and cutting boards. Curiously, faucet handles turned out to be the least contaminated object the scientists tested.

To the delight of good housewives, the researchers believe that “proper food handling,” including heat treatment, regular handwashing, and disinfection of kitchen surfaces, will help prevent cross-contamination. The main thing is not to forget to wipe well jars with spices and seasonings.