The Seasoning Container Touched While Mixing Yukhoe Became a 'Bidirectional Reservoir' for Food-Poisoning Bacteria

[Financial News] A study has found that a seasoning container handled casually while making yukhoe can act as a 'reservoir' that transfers food-poisoning bacteria back and forth. The findings scientifically confirmed a blind spot in hygiene management, which has traditionally focused on cooking utensils such as knives and cutting boards.
A research team led by Professor Sunae Kim of the Department of Food Science and Biotechnology at Ewha Womans University announced on the 30th that it had quantitatively identified a cross-contamination route during yukhoe preparation. Pathogenic E. coli was transferred from contaminated gloves or hands to a seasoning container and then returned to the ingredients.
The experiments showed that the transfer rate reached as high as 15.5% when a seasoning container was handled with hands that had touched yukhoe. This was more than 10 times higher at most than the rate of 1.1%–4.7% when the container was handled with hands contaminated with the bacteria but not used to touch yukhoe. The moisture and fat characteristic of yukhoe helped facilitate the movement of the bacteria.
The seasoning container did more than absorb the bacteria. It acted as a 'bidirectional reservoir,' releasing the bacteria back into yukhoe through hands that touched the contaminated container. Pathogenic E. coli on the surface of the container survived until at least 35 days had passed, even under refrigerated storage, indicating that it could become a long-term source of food poisoning.
Until now, hygiene management for raw meat had focused on primary cooking utensils such as knives and cutting boards. Cross-contamination between cooks' hands and seasoning containers, however, had been relatively overlooked.
Professor Sunae Kim explained, "We confirmed that seasoning containers, which had been a blind spot in hygiene management, can serve as actual transmission routes for pathogenic E. coli." She added, "Specific hygiene guidelines that can be applied in the field, such as changing gloves at each stage of preparation and regularly disinfecting seasoning containers, must be established."
Meanwhile, Professor Kim's paper, titled 'The Role of Seasoning Containers as Reservoirs for Pathogenic E. coli: Cross-Contamination Patterns During Yukhoe Preparation,' is scheduled for publication in the December issue of the international food science journal Food Research International. It was recently published online ahead of print.

[email protected] Kim Man-gi Reporter