Question

how does food become contaminated?
adapted from centers for disease control, food - borne illness, faqs
¹ we live in a microbial world, and there are many opportunities for food to become contaminated as it is produced and prepared. many food - borne microbes are present in healthy animals (usually in their intestines) raised for food. meat and poultry carcasses can become contaminated during slaughter by contact with small amounts of intestinal contents. similarly, fresh fruits and vegetables can be contaminated if they are washed or irrigated with water that is contaminated with animal manure or human sewage. some types of salmonella can infect a hen’s ovary so that the internal contents of a normal looking egg can be contaminated even before the shell is formed.
² later in food processing other food - borne microbes can be introduced from infected humans who handle the food, or by cross - contamination from some other raw agricultural product. in the kitchen, microbes can be transferred from one food to another food by using the same knife, cutting board or other utensil to prepare both without washing the surface or utensil in between. a food that is fully cooked can become recontaminated if it touches other raw foods or drippings from raw foods that contain pathogens.
³ the way that food is handled after it is contaminated can also make a difference in whether or not an outbreak occurs. many bacterial microbes need to multiply to a larger number before enough are present in food to cause disease. given warm moist conditions and an ample supply of nutrients, one bacterium that reproduces by dividing itself every half hour can produce 17 million progeny in 12 hours. as a result, lightly contaminated food left out overnight can be highly infectious by the next day. if the food were refrigerated promptly, the bacteria would not multiply at all. in general, refrigeration or freezing prevents virtually all bacteria from growing but generally preserves them in a state of suspended animation.
what foods are most associated with food - borne illness?
⁴ raw foods of animal origin are the most likely to be contaminated; that is, raw meat and poultry, raw eggs, unpasteurized milk, and raw shellfish. because filter - feeding shellfish strain microbes from the sea over many months, they are particularly likely to be contaminated if there are any pathogens in the seawater. foods that mingle

Explanation:

The text provided is an excerpt about food contamination and food - borne illness, but it doesn't contain a specific question. If you want to know about the types of food most associated with food - borne illness (from the last part of the text), the relevant information is: Raw foods of animal origin are the most likely to be contaminated; these include raw meat and poultry, raw eggs, unpasteurized milk, and raw shellfish. Among these, raw shellfish are particularly likely to be contaminated as filter - feeding shellfish strain microbes from the sea over many months, so if there are pathogens in the seawater, they are at high risk of contamination.

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Answer:

The text provided is an excerpt about food contamination and food - borne illness, but it doesn't contain a specific question. If you want to know about the types of food most associated with food - borne illness (from the last part of the text), the relevant information is: Raw foods of animal origin are the most likely to be contaminated; these include raw meat and poultry, raw eggs, unpasteurized milk, and raw shellfish. Among these, raw shellfish are particularly likely to be contaminated as filter - feeding shellfish strain microbes from the sea over many months, so if there are pathogens in the seawater, they are at high risk of contamination.

If this is not the question you want to ask, please provide more details or clarify your question so that I can assist you better.