question: How much of a rotten or spoiled food does one need to ingest so that one's body goes into "Food posoining/vomit/I'm ill mode"?
comment: It totally depends on the specific bacteria involved. But for the most part things like E. coli and Salmonella do not survive longer than about 4 hours on a surface exposed to air. On wooden surfaces, they are absorbed very quickly into the pores of the wood and cannot easily be transferred back onto food because they are trapped inside the wood. They quickly die upon drying out.
passages: Eating deteriorated food could not be considered safe due to mycotoxins or microbial wastes. Some pathogenic bacteria, such as "Clostridium perfringens" and "Bacillus cereus", are capable of causing spoilage.
  
  Issues of food spoilage do not necessarily have to do with the quality of the food, but more so with the safety of consuming said food. However, there are cases where food has been proven to contain toxic ingredients. 200 years ago, Claviceps purpurea, a type of fungus, was linked to human diseases and 100 years ago in Japan, yellow rice was found to contain toxic ingredients. 
  
  Section::::Prevention.
   Section::::Signs.
  
  Signs of food spoilage may include an appearance different from the food in its fresh form, such as a change in color, a change in texture, an unpleasant odour, or an undesirable taste. The item may become softer than normal. If mold occurs, it is often visible externally on the item.
  
  Section::::Consequences.
  
  Spoilage bacteria do not normally cause "food poisoning"; typically, the microorganisms that cause foodborne illnesses are odorless and flavourless, and otherwise undetectable outside the lab.
   As these microorganisms colonize a piece of meat, they begin to break it down, leaving behind toxins that can cause enteritis or food poisoning, potentially lethal in the rare case of botulism. The microorganisms do not survive a thorough cooking of the meat, but several of their toxins and microbial spores do. The microbes may also infect the person eating the meat, although against this the microflora of the human gut is normally an effective barrier.
  
  Section::::Testing.
   Contamination and spoilage problems in primary food processing can lead to significant public health threats, as the resulting foods are used so widely. However, many forms of processing contribute to improved food safety and longer shelf life before the food spoils. Commercial food processing uses control systems such as hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) and failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) to reduce the risk of harm.
  
  Section::::Classification.:Secondary.
   The journal is abstracted and indexed in Analytical Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews, CAB International, Chemical Abstracts Service, Current Contents/Agriculture, Biology & Environmental Sciences, Current Contents/Life Sciences, Elsevier BIOBASE, EMBASE, MEDLINE/PubMed, Science Citation Index, and Scopus. According to the "Journal Citation Reports", it has a 2014 impact factor of 2.895, ranking it 30th out of 87 journals in the category "Toxicology" and 14th out of 123 journals in the category "Food Science & Technology".
   BULLET::::- Toxins. Many virulence factors are proteins made by bacteria that poison host cells and cause tissue damage. For example, there are many food poisoning toxins produced by bacteria that can contaminate human foods. Some of these can remain in "spoiled" food even after cooking and cause illness when the contaminated food is consumed. Some bacterial toxins are chemically altered and inactivated by the heat of cooking.
  
  Section::::Virulent viruses.
  
  Virus virulence factors allow it replicate, modify host defenses, allow it to spread within the host, and are toxic to the host.
   The Food Defect Action Levels
  
  The Food Defect Action Levels: Levels of Natural or Unavoidable Defects in Foods That Present No Health Hazards for Humans is a publication of the United States Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition detailing acceptable levels of food contamination from sources such as maggots, thrips, insect fragments, "foreign matter", mold, rodent hairs, and insect and mammalian feces.
   BULLET::::- Roman Empire – There is speculation that the Romans, in particular the elite, suffered chronic to severe lead poisoning due to the ubiquity of lead in e.g. lined pots in which acidic foodstuffs were boiled, over and above any mere exposure to lead in water pipes. They also used sugar of lead to sweeten their wines.
  
  Section::::List of notable incidents.:Middle Ages.
  
  BULLET::::- Europe - numerous incidents of human poisoning due to the consumption of rye bread made from grain infected with ergot fungi
  
  Section::::List of notable incidents.:19th century.
  
  BULLET::::- 1850s – Swill milk scandal in New York
   Food poisoning has been recognized as a disease since as early as Hippocrates. The sale of rancid, contaminated, or adulterated food was commonplace until the introduction of hygiene, refrigeration, and vermin controls in the 19th century. Discovery of techniques for killing bacteria using heat, and other microbiological studies by scientists such as Louis Pasteur, contributed to the modern sanitation standards that are ubiquitous in developed nations today. This was further underpinned by the work of Justus von Liebig, which led to the development of modern food storage and food preservation methods. In more recent years, a greater understanding of the causes of food-borne illnesses has led to the development of more systematic approaches such as the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), which can identify and eliminate many risks.
   Food contaminant
  
  Food contamination refers to the presence of harmful chemicals and microorganisms in food, which can cause consumer illness. This article addresses the chemical contamination of foods, as opposed to microbiological contamination, which can be found under foodborne illness.
   Biological contamination refers to food that has been contaminated by substances produced by living creatures, such as humans, rodents, pests or microorganisms. This includes bacterial contamination, viral contamination, or parasite contamination that is transferred through saliva, pest droppings, blood or faecal matter. Bacterial contamination is the most common cause of food poisoning worldwide. If an environment is high in starch or protein, water, oxygen, has a neutral PH level, and maintains a temperature between 5ºC and 60ºC (danger zone) for even a brief period of time (~0-20 minutes), bacteria are likely to survive. 
   Toxin that is produced by the bacterium in containers of food that have been improperly preserved is the most common cause of food-borne botulism. Fish that has been pickled without the salinity or acidity of brine that contains acetic acid and high sodium levels, as well as smoked fish stored at too high a temperature, presents a risk, as does improperly canned food.
   Foodborne illness, commonly called "food poisoning", is caused by bacteria, toxins, viruses, parasites, and prions. Roughly 7 million people die of food poisoning each year, with about 10 times as many suffering from a non-fatal version. The two most common factors leading to cases of bacterial foodborne illness are cross-contamination of ready-to-eat food from other uncooked foods and improper temperature control. Less commonly, acute adverse reactions can also occur if chemical contamination of food occurs, for example from improper storage, or use of non-food grade soaps and disinfectants. Food can also be adulterated by a very wide range of articles (known as "foreign bodies") during farming, manufacture, cooking, packaging, distribution, or sale. These foreign bodies can include pests or their droppings, hairs, cigarette butts, wood chips, and all manner of other contaminants. It is possible for certain types of food to become contaminated if stored or presented in an unsafe container, such as a ceramic pot with lead-based glaze.
   Several bacteria, such as E. coli, Clostridium botulinum, and Salmonella enterica, are well-known and are targeted for elimination via various industrial processes. Though bacteria are often the focus of food safety processes, viruses, protozoa, and molds are also known to cause food-borne illness and are of concern when designing processes to ensure food safety. Although the goal of food safety is to eliminate harmful organisms from food and prevent food-borne illness, detecting said organisms is another important function of food safety mechanisms.
  
  Section::::Food safety.:Monitoring and detection.
   Tainted potato salad sickening hundreds at a Communist political convention in Massillon, Ohio, and aboard a Washington DC cruise boat in separate incidents during a single week in 1932 drew national attention to the dangers of so-called "ptomaine poisoning" in the pages of the American news weekly, "Time."
  
  Another newspaper article from 1944 told of more than 150 persons being hospitalized in Chicago with ptomaine poisoning apparently from rice pudding served by a chain of restaurants.
  
  Section::::Mechanism.
  
  Section::::Mechanism.:Incubation period.
   BULLET::::- Stella, P., Cerf, O., Koutsoumanis, KP, Nguyen-The, C., Sofos, JN, Valero, A. & Zwietering, MH (2013) Ranking the microbiological safety of foods: a new tool and its application to composite products. "Trends in Food Science & Technology" 33 (2): 124-138.
  
  BULLET::::- ANSES, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety, classifies in susceptible populations 'persons with a higher than average probability of developing, after exposure to the food hazard, symptoms of the disease, or serious forms of the disease'
   The safe storage of food for home use should strictly adhere to guidelines set out by reliable sources, such as the United States Department of Agriculture. These guidelines have been thoroughly researched by scientists to determine the best methods for reducing the real threat of food poisoning from unsafe food storage. It is also important to maintain proper kitchen hygiene, to reduce risks of bacteria or virus growth and food poisoning. The common food poisoning illnesses include Listeriosis, Mycotoxicosis, Salmonellosis, E. coli, Staphylococcal food poisoning and Botulism. There are many other organisms that can also cause food poisoning.
   BULLET::::- European Commission Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 of 15 November 2005 indicates that “foodstuffs should not contain micro-organisms or their toxins or metabolites in quantities that present an unacceptable risk for human health”, underlining that methods are required for foodborne virus detection.
  
  Section::::Food contaminant testing.
   Section::::Risk analysis.:Risk assessment.:General characteristics.:"Risk characterization".
  
  "The qualitative and/or quantitative estimation, including attendant uncertainties, of the probability of occurrence and severity of known or potential adverse health effects in a given population based on hazard identification, hazard characterization and exposure assessment." During this stage, estimates of risk are generated from the outputs of hazard identification, hazard characterization, and exposure assessment. A proper risk characterization should take into account multiple degrees of uncertainty and variability.
  
  Section::::Risk analysis.:Risk communication.
   There are two types of pathogenic bacteria that target different categories of food. The first type is called "Clostridium perfingen" and targets foods such as meat and poultry, and "Bacillus cereus", which targets milk and cream. When stored or subjected to unruly conditions, the organisms will begin to breed apace, releasing harmful toxins that can causes
  
  Section::::Reasons.:Fungi.
   Proper storage, sanitary tools and work spaces, heating and cooling properly and to adequate temperatures, and avoiding contact with other uncooked foods can greatly reduce the chances of contamination. Tightly sealed water and air proof containers are good measures to limit the chances of both physical and biological contamination during storage. Using clean, sanitary surfaces and tools, free of debris, chemicals, standing liquids, and other food types (different than the kind currently being prepared, i.e. mixing vegetables/meats or beef/poultry) can help reduce the chance of all forms of contamination. However, even if all precautions have been taken and the food has been safely prepared and stored, bacteria can still form over time during storage. Food should be consumed within one to seven (1-7) days while it has been stored in a cold environment, or one to twelve (1-12) months if it was in a frozen environment (if it was frozen immediately after preparation). The length of time before a food becomes unsafe to eat depends on the type of food it is, the surrounding environment, and the method with which it is kept out of the danger zone.
   Section::::Diseases.
  
  Section::::Diseases.:Black rot of sweet potato.
   "The qualitative and/or quantitative evaluation of the likely intake of biological, chemical, and physical agents via food as well as exposures from other sources if relevant." This step characterizes the amount of hazard that is consumed by various members of the exposure populations. Taking into account the food consumption patterns of the target population and levels of hazard in all steps of the production process, an exposure assessment examines the exposure to the hazard over a particular period of time in foods that are actually consumed. The assessment should also account for varying levels of hazard throughout production to estimate the likely hazard level at point of consumption.
   An important task within the realm of food safety is the elimination of microorganisms responsible for food-borne illness. Food and waterborne diseases still pose a serious health concern, with hundreds of outbreaks reported per year since 1971 in the United States alone. The risk of these diseases has risen throughout the years, mainly due to the mishandling of raw food, poor sanitation, and poor socioeconomic conditions. In addition to diseases caused by direct infection by pathogens, some food borne diseases are caused by the presence of toxins produced by microorganisms in food. There are five main types of microbial pathogens which contaminate food and water: viruses, bacteria, fungi, pathogenic protozoa and helminths.
   Because of the potential impact of "C. intestinalis" introduction to new habitats, fish and shellfish harvesters are advised to avoid transfer of harvested shellfish and fishing gear to other areas, to dry gear thoroughly before transfer, to inspect boat hulls and, if necessary, to clean them thoroughly, disinfect with bleach or vinegar and dry before moving to other areas. It is also recommended to dispose of any organisms removed from boat hulls or gear on land and to release bilge water on land or disinfect it.
  
  Section::::Sexual reproduction.
  