Reference no: EM133657262
Case Study
"It's amazing how much money you can save by buying ground beef in bulk!" James observed. He and Albert were driving home after their Saturday morning shopping trip. "True," said Albert "but I'm not sure we have enough space in the freezer to store it all."
"That's not necessary." said James. "We don't have to freeze it. We can just keep it in the fridge. As long as we set the temperature control low enough, the meat will be fine."
"No, it won't," replied Albert "we must divide it up into smaller servings and freeze everything we don't use today."
"Never mind," said James, "I'll take care of it."
Once they got home, James spent some time reorganizing the freezer so that the 5-pound package of ground beef fit. Over the next few weeks they would thaw it out in the refrigerator overnight, take what they needed for the day, and then put the rest back in the freezer. One evening, both James and Albert developed stomach cramps and diarrhea.
"You see," moaned Albert, "I told you that we should have divided the beef up so that each portion was only thawed out once."
"Nonsense," said James, doubled-over with cramps, "it couldn't have been the beef. Freezing kills all the microbes that cause disease. I learned in class, that most microbes that cause disease in people are mesophiles, and they grow best at body temperature. This must be something else."
1. Can microbes survive freezing?
2. Does thawing meat in the fridge provide enough protection from potential pathogens?
3. What would have been a better approach to prevent the roommates' discomfort?