60 free Food Safety trivia questions with answers — science & nature quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
52 free Food safety trivia questions with answers. Food safety is one of those subjects everyone half-knows and few know cold. This quiz covers the practical rules (the 4-60 °C danger zone, the two-hour rule, fridge and cooking temperatures, where to stick the thermometer, why Americans refrigerate eggs), the microbes (Salmonella, Campylobacter, Listeria, E. coli O157, norovirus, Bacillus cereus and its 'fried rice syndrome', botulism and honey) and the natural toxins in nuts, reef fish and pufferfish. There is a history round too: Nicolas Appert and the birth of canning, Louis Pasteur, Semmelweis and handwashing, The Jungle and the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, Typhoid Mary, the Jack in the Box outbreak and the NASA origins of HACCP. It works as a training icebreaker for kitchen staff, a food-hygiene refresher or a pub-quiz round with a stomach-turning edge. Every answer has been checked against Wikipedia and shows its citation once you have answered.
30 of 60 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Food-safety agencies define the bacterial 'danger zone' as roughly what temperature range?
4 to 60 °C (40 to 140 °F)
Growth is fastest in the middle of the range, between about 21 and 47 °C.
Q 02Perishable food left in the danger zone for longer than how many hours should be thrown out?
Two
The window drops to one hour when the air temperature is above 32 °C (90 °F).
Q 03What is the maximum temperature at which a home refrigerator should be kept, according to US guidance?
40 °F (4.4 °C)
The freezer should sit at 0 °F or below; an appliance thermometer is the only way to be sure.
Q 04To what internal temperature should poultry be cooked to be considered safe?
74 °C (165 °F)
Insert the probe into the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone, which conducts heat and reads high.
Q 05Ground beef, lamb, veal and pork should reach what internal temperature?
71 °C (160 °F)
Grinding spreads surface bacteria through the whole batch, which is why burgers need to be hotter than steaks.
Q 06Where should the tip of a meat thermometer probe go?
The thickest part, not touching bone
Bone conducts heat and gives an overestimate; fat and cartilage mislead too.
Q 07According to the WHO, foodborne pathogens cause roughly how many cases of illness a year worldwide?
600 million
They also cause an estimated 420,000 deaths a year.
Q 08The US CDC estimates how many foodborne illnesses occur in the United States each year?
48 million
That comes with about 128,000 hospitalisations and 3,000 deaths.
Q 09Roughly what share of US foodborne illness is caused by norovirus, the leading culprit?
About 58%
It is the 'winter vomiting bug', and as few as ten virus particles can infect a person.
Q 10Norovirus takes its name from an outbreak in 1968 at an elementary school in which Ohio town?
Norwalk
It was first called the 'Norwalk agent' before electron microscopy identified the virus in 1972.
Q 11Why do alcohol-based hand sanitisers tend not to work against norovirus?
The virus has no lipid envelope
Soap, water and 20 seconds of scrubbing remain the reliable defence.
Q 12Which two categories of food are most often implicated in norovirus outbreaks?
Shellfish and salad ingredients
Oysters filter the virus out of contaminated water; salads are handled raw by many hands.
Q 13What is the most common cause of food poisoning worldwide?
Bacterial contamination
Q 21Campylobacter infection from undercooked chicken is the most common trigger of which paralysing nerve disorder?
Guillain-Barré syndrome
Most cases of the disorder are still mild, but the link is well established.
Q 22The 1992-93 E. coli outbreak that killed four children was traced to undercooked beef patties from which chain?
Jack in the Box
It transformed US meat regulation and made 'cook burgers through' a national rule.
Q 23E. coli O157:H7 was first recognised as a human pathogen after a 1982 outbreak in which two US states?
Oregon and Michigan
Salmonella, Campylobacter, E. coli and Listeria are the big names.
Q 14Salmonella bacteria are named after which American veterinary surgeon?
Daniel Elmer Salmon
His assistant Theobald Smith actually made the discovery, but the boss's name stuck.
Q 15Symptoms of salmonellosis usually begin how long after infection?
12 to 72 hours
Meat, eggs, water and milk are the usual carriers, along with pet reptiles.
Q 16Heating food to what internal temperature is recommended to protect against Salmonella?
75 °C (167 °F)
Typhoid fever is caused by a typhoidal strain that enters the bloodstream.
Q 17Why does the USDA say to refrigerate eggs, which Europeans happily leave on the counter?
US producers wash them, eroding the cuticle
In the UK, hens are also immunised against Salmonella, so eggs are considered safe for around 21 days.
Q 18Which foodborne bacterium is unusual in multiplying at fridge temperatures, as low as 0 °C?
Listeria monocytogenes
It is named after Joseph Lister and is especially dangerous in pregnancy.
Q 19Pregnant women are advised to avoid soft cheeses such as Brie and feta because of which bacterium?
Listeria
Infection can cause miscarriage or stillbirth, and 20 to 30 percent of cases in high-risk people are fatal.
Q 20Raw poultry is the major source of which bacterium, a leading cause of gastroenteritis worldwide?
Campylobacter
Its name means 'curved rod', and infection is the most common trigger of Guillain-Barré syndrome.
Between two and seven percent of infections progress to haemolytic-uraemic syndrome, which attacks the kidneys.
Q 24Botulism is caused by a toxin from which bacterium?
Clostridium botulinum
The name comes from the Latin botulus, 'sausage', after 19th-century outbreaks linked to cured meat.
Q 25Honey should not be fed to children under what age because it can contain botulism spores?
12 months
An infant's gut cannot yet stop the spores germinating.
Q 26Foodborne botulism has most often resulted from home-canned foods with what characteristic?
Low acid content
Green beans, corn, beets and asparagus are classic culprits; the bacterium thrives without oxygen.
Q 27The word 'botulism' comes from the Latin word for what?
Sausage
Early cases in Germany were traced to blood sausage.
Q 28'Fried rice syndrome' is the nickname for poisoning by which spore-forming bacterium?
Bacillus cereus
Rice cooked too briefly to kill spores and then left unrefrigerated is the classic cause.
Q 29Toxins from Staphylococcus aureus in food left out too long produce symptoms after how long?
One to six hours
The bacteria come from human skin and noses, which is why handwashing matters so much.
Q 30Aflatoxins, among the most carcinogenic substances known, are produced by which type of organism?
Moulds
Aspergillus species grow on peanuts, maize and tree nuts, and the toxin targets the liver.