8.5.4  Appearance of spoiled food

Spoiled food is generally more a problem of appearance than a problem of disease causing. In food spoilage, the changes in appearance or texture of the food, such as rottenness, softness and change in colour, taste or odour are usually obvious, whereas in contaminated food such characteristics may not be noticed. A large majority of the microorganisms responsible for food spoilage are not pathogenic to humans. However, you should advise people in your community that they should not eat food that is spoiled because it is not nutritious and may make them sick (cause vomiting).