Living · 6 pages · 12 min
How a refrigerator slows microbes without stopping them
Cold slows bacterial chemistry without freezing the cells or erasing them.
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From the opening
A refrigerator slows microbes by holding food cold enough that most bacterial enzymes crawl instead of sprint. It does not stop every organism, and it does not kill the ones that were already in the food the way a thorough cook can. The opening covers enzyme reactions slowed by cold, organisms that still grow chilled, and why this is not a kill step.
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Inside
- Enzyme reactions slowed by cold
- Organisms that still grow chilled
- Why this is not a kill step
- Hot food warming the box
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Temperature dependence of bacterial growth rates
- Psychrotrophic bacteria such as Listeria in refrigeration