This electron microscope image shows Campylobacter jejuni ST-21 cells, a major cause of foodborne illness. Image credit: Kathryn Gotts, Microscopist at the Quadram Institute Advanced Microscopy Facility, using a microscope based at the John Innes Centre

“Everyday kitchen routines can seem harmless from slicing vegetables to rinsing a cutting board and wiping the counter. Yet behind these familiar actions, an invisible world unfolds. Hidden among crumbs and water droplets, a tiny bacterium called Campylobacter can survive just long enough to cause infection.

Campylobacter is the leading cause of bacterial foodborne illness in the UK and worldwide. While thorough cooking of food is crucial, many infections happen before food reaches the plate, through contamination of kitchen surfaces and utensils. At the Quadram Institute, I’m studying how Campylobacter spreads in the kitchen. Using a new Kitchen Model experiment, I’ve recreated the kitchen environment in the lab to study Campylobacter survival on plastic cutting boards and its potential to spread during food preparation.

Bringing the kitchen into the lab

I developed a Kitchen Model that lets me measure how long Campylobacter can survive on cutting boards under realistic household conditions. To make the model as accurate as possible, I incorporated general information from the Food Standards Agency (FSA UK) about consumer kitchen behaviours, such as how people wash cutting boards, the time between preparing raw and ready-to-eat foods, and the materials most commonly used.

I used this information to create miniature, lab-scale chopping boards that replicate real household conditions. I then inoculated them with Campylobacter and monitored the bacteria’s survival over time, simulating typical consumer behaviours in how and when cutting boards are cleaned.

This means my model doesn’t just reflect lab conditions; it reflects real-world scenarios, bridging the gap between controlled experiments and everyday food safety practices.

Studying how long Campylobacter can survive in the kitchen

My experiments show that Campylobacter can survive on cutting boards longer than expected, even though it is normally sensitive to oxygen.

Remarkably, I’ve observed the bacteria forming early-stage biofilms; clusters of cells that cling to the cutting board and provide protection.

This survival means that Campylobacter can persist long enough to potentially cause infection, particularly if surfaces are moist or slightly damaged. I can now use the Kitchen Model to explore questions such as which board materials are safest, how effective different washing methods are, and how long surfaces should dry before reuse.

To capture these details, I collaborated with the Quadram Institute’s Advanced Microscopy Facility to optimise methods for visualising Campylobacter and obtain high-resolution images of the bacteria, showing exactly how they attach to surfaces and persist in real-world conditions.

The bacteria are tiny—each cell measures just 1.5 to 2.5 micrometres long, which is more than 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair. Their spiral shape and thin flagella can be seen clinging to the surface. These images reveal just how small and resilient Campylobacter is, helping us understand how bacteria that are invisible to the naked eye can survive daily cleaning routines and potentially cause infection

Science for safer kitchens

By combining laboratory precision with realistic consumer behaviour, my work aims to translate microbiology research into practical guidance for safer kitchens. Small adjustments, like using separate boards for raw meat and ready-to-eat foods, or ensuring boards are fully dried before reuse, can significantly reduce infection risk.

The Kitchen Model is a flexible platform for studying how bacteria respond to different cleaning methods, board materials, and household routines. I hope this research will help shape better consumer advice and reduce foodborne infections at home.”