Food Safety: Bacterial Growth Simulator

Storage Conditions

Food temperature 20 °C

Simulation speed 1 h/s

Initial contamination 100 CFU/g

Bacteria count

–

Elapsed time

–

Status

–

How it works

Bacteria multiply by splitting in two at a rate that depends almost entirely on temperature. Between roughly 4 °C and 60 °C — the "danger zone" — many foodborne pathogens can double their population every 20 minutes to a few hours, fastest near body temperature. Below 4 °C growth nearly stops; above 60 °C heat starts killing bacteria faster than they can reproduce.

N(t) = N₀ · 2^(r(T)·t)
r(T) ≈ rmax · exp(−(T−37)² / 2σ²)   [4°C ≤ T ≤ 60°C]
r(T) ≈ 0                             [T < 4°C]
r(T) < 0                             [T > 60°C, heat kill]

Food temperature — where the food is being held; sliding into the 4–60 °C band wakes the colony up, sliding above 60 °C cooks it back down.
Simulation speed — how many simulated hours pass per real second, so you can watch a whole day of storage play out quickly.
Initial contamination — the starting bacterial load, since real food is never perfectly sterile.
Status — turns from Safe to Caution to Danger as the modeled count crosses common spoilage/illness thresholds (10³ and 10⁶ CFU/g).

Real-world relevance: this is exactly why food safety guidance insists on refrigerating perishables promptly and cooking meat to a safe internal temperature — every extra hour spent in the danger zone compounds exponentially, not linearly.

Safe

Low contamination Growing colony Danger zone

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