Temperature Requirements for Bacterial Growth...

A discussion of the temperature requirements for bacterial growth.

Bacterial growth has four stages:

• lag
• log
• stationary
• decline

Bacteria that are implicated in foodborne illness generally prefer temperature ranges from 40 F to 140 F. Listeria, however, will reproduce as low as 38 F. This temperature range is called the bacterial growth zone.

The super growth zone is the temperature range where bacteria grow at peak rates. This range is 70 F to 120 F. You will see sources also list this range as 50 F to 120 F. Food should never be left in this range, if at all possible. Where in these temperature ranges does room temperature fall? Where in these temperature ranges does the normal kitchen environment fall?

In the HACCP food flow chart, these temperatures are generally highlighted with darkened lines to emphasize the range. The goal is to heat food as quickly as possible to minimize time in the danger zone. A recipe that creates a graph displaying a steep rise through the danger zone would generally meet this goal. Mark the HACCP Monitoring Chart with the Super Growth Zone, the Growth Zone, and circle the temperature that generally approximates accepted room temperature. All temperatures are in Fahrenheit degrees.

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