A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Southampton suggests that using copper utensils while cooking prevents the cross contamination of food items with E.coli bacteria.
The study comes following an outbreak of the deadly bacteria in Germany that has so far infected more than 1,700 people and killed 18. Health officials in the country have revealed that the people have been infected with a mutated form of the bacteria known as E.coli O104:H4.
Lead researcher Bill Keevil said that while the study has not specifically looked at O104, copper’s effectiveness against all of the new strains of the bacteria were studied. “A study looking at copper's efficacy against new strains of E. coli has just been completed. Although it did not specifically look at O104, all the strains investigated have died rapidly on copper”, he said.