Final answer:
Food contamination refers to the intrusion of hazardous chemical, physical, or biological matter into food or food areas, which may result in consumer illness. It includes contaminants like agrochemicals and environmental pollutants and is capable of occurring throughout the food production and consumption process.
Step-by-step explanation:
The presence of physical, chemical, or biological matter in food or on food, or the food environment, is generally referred to as food contamination. This can include harmful chemicals and microorganisms that may cause consumer illness. A key distinction in the types of food contamination includes agrochemicals and environmental contaminants. Agrochemicals are substances related to agricultural practices such as pesticides and fertilizers, while environmental contaminants can be substances that contaminate food through contact with the environment where the food is grown or processed, such as heavy metals or pollutants.
Food contamination can happen at various stages including the growing, harvesting, transporting, storing, packaging, processing, and consuming of food. Microbial pathogens that can contaminate food include Norovirus, Salmonella, Clostridium perfringens, and Campylobacter, while chemicals in food can sometimes be determined by their broader definition which includes both harmful and benign substances necessary for life.
Foods can act as artifacts in the ways that they carry evidence of human culture, history, and technological development, including those that affect food safety and contamination. The interaction between organisms and the abiotic environment can lead to contamination as well, for example, through soil or water that contains harmful substances.