Testing the five-second rule

November 2007

Just how dirty is that sandwich you dropped? And is it safe to eat if you pick it up really fast? Clemson food scientist Paul Dawson recently made the New York Times considering those questions.



Dawson, recipient of the 2007 Godley-Snell Award for Excellence in Agricultural Research, is a professor in Clemson’s food science and human nutrition department. His research in food safety and spoilage has helped keep the nation’s food supply among the safest in the world and provided consumers and corporations tremendous savings by maintaining food freshness. 



His students are at the heart of his research program. The study cited in the New York Times article is nothing new for him. He or his students have made more than 100 scientific presentations and published more than 80 research articles in peer-reviewed publications and 10 book chapters.



He’s also worked to develop a cost-efficient method for making soy flour into bio-based films to replace petroleum-based products. The films are environmentally friendly and can be recycled as safe, nutrient-rich animal feeds. For more information, go to www.clemson.edu/foodscience.