Contents
Our story
How did we get started?
In 2019 “FANGSUN” was established. Fangs is a company that loves simple products and styles. This love motivates us to design, and upgrade modern steel pipes to make people’s lives easier.
What makes our product unique?
Most of our sponge holders are made of stainless steel, are durable, resistant to tourists, and easy to clean. Holding sponges, brushes, and hand soap, keep your bedside table neat and your cleaning tools close at hand.
Why do we love what we do?
We love to help our customers work better in the home. It makes their lives a lot easier. A modern and simple look can easily hold hand soap, dish soap, sponge, and sink covers, keeping everything you need all moving in one compact space.
Fungsun large Kitchen Sponges Help Better Breed Germs
There is a structural reason for your sponge to catch so many germs
Your kitchen sponge is full of germs. But repeated contact with food waste is not the only reason; the unique fangsun large kitchen sponge holder structure plays a role, too. It may also encourage the development of new biological agents for research, according to the study of Nature Chemical Biology.
Biggest challenges
One of the biggest challenges facing biologists is developing genes that will not grow easily in a laboratory. Some germs are incredibly dark, and scientists generally do not know what conditions these insects need. “It’s like trying to make pandas breed in the zoo,” said biologist Trina McMahon of the University of Wisconsin – Madison, who was not involved in the new study.
Range.
Sponges may provide the answer. Bacteria are often planted in smooth and inseparable areas in petrol containers. But the sponges are packed with empty packets — more important, not uniforms. “Imagine there are smaller rooms and bigger rooms,” said Lingchong You, a small biologist at Duke University and senior author of the study. Some species of bacteria depend on many other
People for survival need space to build larger communities, but others require limited isolation so that they are not killed by their neighbors. The sponge mix for large and small rooms provides the right range.
Fangs Sponge holder power
Sponge power as a bacterial farm may seem accurate, “in fact indicating that testing is a challenging process,” you say. Researchers first developed a model for computer-like sponges and found that different cell sizes would allow more species to germinate. Then they replicate these effects on cellulose sponges.
“It’s not uncommon to see both [situations] being put together so well,” McMahon said. But you notice that your team is focusing on Escherichia coli lab-based models to be independent of each other or to be independent — so you wonder if the sponge method will work with other sensitive bacteria. He says: “There is a limit, I think, in what you can do with those improved models. Future experiments will determine whether purpose-built sponges can support wild pathogens. In the meantime, he recommends cleaning your kitchen sponge: “It’s probably not the cleanest.”
In the background
Fungsun Kitchen sponges’ holders are one of the main cleaning tools used to clean kitchen utensils and areas such as cutting boards for kitchen utensils, sinks, oven tops, and refrigerators. However, during cleaning food residues can adhere to the sponge area and wet areas such as sinks can act as microbial ponds that can contaminate the sponges during use. Subsequent mishandling, storage, or improper disinfection of kitchen sponges will result in microbial growth at room temperature. Therefore, kitchen sponges are a major source of cross-contamination as they can transmit food-borne pathogens, infectious agents, and the damage caused by microorganisms to food-contact areas
Survey
A study conducted in 10 kitchens in the United States of America found that 33 and 67% of the tested sponges contained Escherichia coli and fecal coliforms, respectively In addition, Enriquez et al. found that 15.4% of indoor sponge samples were contaminated with Salmonella spp. Further research has shown that kitchen sponges collected in home kitchens were contaminated with Campylobacter spp., Enterobacter cloacae, E. coli, Klebsiella spp., Proteus spp., Salmonella spp., Acinetobacter, Moraxella, and Staphylococcus spp.
In similar studies, kitchen sponges have been found to contain high levels of aerobic mesophilic bacteria, coliforms, Enter bacteria eat, yeast, and worms due to poor sponge hygiene practices in the kitchen
Coliforms
Coliforms are a common group of bacteria within the Enterobacteriaceae that have been used as reference microorganisms for hygiene purposes. Coliforms can be found in the kitchen due to inadequate disinfection procedures, improper hygiene and hygiene practices, contamination of raw products, as well as contamination from contaminated food in a home hygiene study, kitchen sponges had coliforms of second, higher drain trap
Fungsun sponge reduces Enterobacteriaceae
In addition to the significant health, society al, and economic impact of infectious diseases the proliferation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a major threat to human health that can lead to chronic diseases and deaths in both developed and developing regions. Enterobacteriaceae are a possible cause of serious infections and are increasingly resistant to antibiotics. Of particular concern with Enterobacteriaceae is the production of ESBLs that lead to multidrug resistance and the proliferation of pan-resistant strains of bacteria.
ESBL code text Enterobacteriaceae is commonly found in hospital settings but is becoming more prevalent in the community the widespread reversal of Enterobacteriaceae that is resistant to multiple drugs in poultry can lead to limited treatment options if infections occur but Fungsun sponge reduces Enterobacteriaceae
Several studies by university
Students have shown that they take bad habits about food safety, hygiene, and handling kitchen cleaning tools like sponges as a result, they increase the risk of foodborne illness The objectives of the study were to
⦁ assess the microbial quality and the use of kitchen sponges used in the dormitories of the University of Sharjah,
⦁ To assess the effect of sterilization on the sponges, and
⦁ To identify any Enterobacteriaceae separated by their sponges and determine profiles and antibiotics.
Ways
A sample collection and a list of questions for using a sponge and holders in the kitchen
Researchers visited the women’s dormitories (two dormitories) at Sharjah University twice a week on different days between 8:00 am and 12:00 pm randomly without prior notice and explained the study objectives to the students who were found in the rooms. During a visit. Typically, 1-2 students live in each room with a bedroom, a small kitchen, and a bathroom. Students who have agreed to take part in the study have signed the consent form. Fifty students from two places agreed to take part in the study.
Kitchen sponges used in kitchens were collected from students who agreed to take part in the study (n = 50) using sterile forks. One sponge was used for each room;
Students share the same sponge in the rooms of two students. The room temperature was maintained at 21 ° C and there were no windows near the kitchens. Sponges were kept in kitchen sinks and could not be exposed to direct sunlight. Collected sponges were placed separately in sterile plastic bags and transferred within 30 min to the Nutrition and Food laboratory (Research Centre for Medical and Health Sciences, University of Sharjah) in an icebox for analysis. In addition, a questionnaire designed by the researchers for this study was completed by participants (n = 50). The questionnaire consisted of two parts; the first part included questions about their social profile, and the second part included questions about the use of a kitchen sponge (found in additional files).
Preparing the sample for analysis
The materials used for kitchen sponges collected from students’ dormitories were polyester (soft yellow side) and polyurethane (sloping side). Each sponge was coded and cut into three parts using a sterile knife. The average size of sponge sections was 6.6 cm × 3.2 cm × 3.3 cm. The first part of the sponge was microbiologically analyzed within 1 h from the detection. The second and third parts of the sponge are stored separately at ambient temperature (21 ° C ± 1) and the relative humidity of 59% ± 2 for 3 and 10 days in a sterile plastic container.
Measurements of weight and water function
The weight and water function (aw) (Labmaster aw, Novasina AG, Switzerland) of the internal and external components of sponge samples (W 2 cm x H 1.5 cm) at 0, 3, and 10 days before microbiological analysis of the samples were measured. A median number of readings were used.
Microbiological Analysis
Fangs kitchen Sponge samples were added to 100 ml of 0.1% water of peptone (Hi-Media Laboratories, India) in a sterile abdominal bag, and placed in a blender (blender EASYMIX, bioMérieux, France) for 2 min. Thereafter, decimal purification was performed and 1 or 0.1 ml of purification was to be repeated in violet red bile glucose agar (VRBGA, HI Media) to include Enterobacteriaceae, violet red bile agar (VRBA, HI Media) for calculated coliforms, in total. Plate count agar (TPCA, HI Media) for mesophilic aerobic bacteria, and Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA, Mast Group Ltd., UK) to calculate yeast and mildew, using a plating method.
VRBGA and TPCA have incubated aerobically for 48 h at 32 ° C, while VRBA was kept at 37 ° C for 48 h. SDA plates were kept running at 21 ° C for 5 days. Unused sponges (n = 3) representing the same types of samples used in the study were purchased at local markets and used as negative controls.
Identification of Enterobacteriaceae isolates
One common colon of Enterobacteriaceae representing a sample of each sponge (pink or purple colonies) was extracted from VRBGA and placed in a 10 ml try tone soy broth (HI Media). Tubes are mixed and incubated at 32 ° C for 24 hours (h) (nutrient agar (HI Media) and incubated for 24 h at 32 ° C. Isolates are identified using Vitek 2 GN ID card (bio Merieux, Marcy-l’Étoile, France) according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Antibiotic resistance testing
The risk of antibiotic Enterobacteriaceae isolate was determined using VITEK 2 (bioMerieux) using a Gram-negative susceptibility card (AST-N215). Card assessed isolate exposure to ampicillin, amoxicillin, piperacillin/tazobactam, cefalotin, cefuroxime, cefuroxime axetil, cefoxitin, cefpodoxime, cefotaxime, softened, meropentamitramitroin, tefloxancycline, temafloxacin, temafloxacin, meropenem, temafloxacin, temafloxacin, temafloxacin, meropenem, temafloxacin, sulfamethoxazole.
Mathematical analysis
Data collected from the questionnaire, as well as the profile and antimicrobial profile of Enterobacteriaceae isolate, were analyzed using the IBM SPSS Statistics 25.0 software for descriptive statistics, percentages, general deviations, and frequency. Differences in microbial statistics in sponge samples during storage were assessed by single variance analysis (ANOVA) and post-hoc analysis by Tukey. The statistically significant value of P <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results
The results of the survey questions (Table 1) showed that more than half (66%) of the participants were medical students (medical colleges, dentists, pharmacists, and health sciences). Most respondents were from the first year and fourth year, and fifth- and second-year students were few. Two-thirds of the respondents indicated that sponges were used by two students, less than one-third (30%) were used by one student, and a small percentage (4%) were used by three students. More than half of the participants (58%) used the sponge for less than one month, 32% used the sponge for two months, and 10% used the sponge for more than 2 months.
Seventy percent of participants do not grind their sponges. The most widely used sponges were dishwashing (94%) and cooking pots (90%). About two-thirds of the collected sponges were used to clean cutting boards. One-third of the collected sponge samples (32%) are used to clean the oven, while 26 and 30% of the collected sponges are used to clean the sink and the surrounding area, respectively. A very low percentage of 4 and 10% of students clean up spills in the kitchen and inside / outside the refrigerator using the same sponge used for cleaning dishes.
Table 1 Symbols and answers for students living in university dormitories for questions about the use of a kitchen sponge
Full-size table
The sponge weight ratio (n = 6) was rejected during storage; 6.22 g (± 1.74) for 0 days, 2.72 g (± 0.54) for 3 days, and 2.59 g (± 0.57) for 10 days. The average aw value of sponges was 0.93 (± 0.18) at 0 days. This decreased to 0.57 (± 0.16) and 0.55 (± 0.06) after the last 3 and 10 days. Active statistics of mesophilic aerobic bacterium, yeasts and molds, Enterobacteriaceae, and coliforms in sponge samples during storage at room temperature (21 ° C) for 0, 3, and 10 days of germs from sponge samples at 0 and after 3 days of storage, while the largest difference was found on the 10th day of storage. Mesophilic aerobic bacterial counts decreased after 3 and 10 days of storage by 0.4 and 1.3 log10 / cm3 respectively.
Enterobacteriaceae decreases
The number of yeast and mildew decreased after 3 and 10 days of storage at 0.6 and 1.3 log10 / cm3 respectively. The incidence of Enterobacteriaceae decreases after 3 and 10 days of the last days the numbers of microorganisms tested in sponge samples decrease as storage time increases. There were no significant differences between demographics by 0.4 and 1.1 log10 / cm3 respectively.
Similarly, the number of coliform populations decreased after 3 days and 10 last days by 0.7 and 1.4 log10 / cm3 respectively. In the negative control sample, the mesophilic aerobic bacteria and yeast and fungi were 2.46 and 1.80 log10 / cm3 respectively. No Enterobacteriaceae or coliforms were found in the samples.
Conversation
Good hygiene practices in the kitchen should include the separation of raw foods from ready-to-eat foods and ensuring that workplaces and utensils are clean to reduce the transmission of foodborne illnesses due to contamination. Disposable detergents are a good option, but there may be financial reasons to use recyclable sponges or fabrics. Sponge use and contamination indicate student food safety practices. The results of the current study showed that students did not have enough information about the efficient use of reusable kitchen sponges as they reported that they used them for many purposes.
Cleaning the refrigerator and soaking it with the same sponges used to clean contact areas with food is a possible cause of the high microbial load on the sponges. Previous studies have reported that the immersion site had the highest levels of bacterial contamination, including coliform, fecal coliform, and Enterobacteriaceae.
Increase the risk of contamination
Student practices increase the risk of contamination with organic pathogens (environmental and food) being transmitted to food-related areas as containers and then further ready for food, leading to infection. Previous studies conducted among university students also showed that students had poor knowledge of food safety in contaminated contaminants
The time intervals selected for storage sponges (3 and 10 days) were to mimic the student’s absence on weekends (3 days) or study leave (10 days). Decreases in mesophilic aerobic bacteria, yeast and fungi, Enterobacteriaceae, and coliform counts are caused by the storage of sponges at room temperature (21 ° C) resulting in a lack of moisture for any other microbial that continues to live/grow.
The number of Enterobacteriaceae isolated is detected by bacterial pathogens. E. aerogenes are associated with nosocomial diseases in dehydrated patients. E. cloacae can cause opportunistic infections, such as meningitis. It is one of the brightest bacteria isolated from home kitchens as well as samples of student sponges K. oxytoca, the second-highest frequency in this study, has previously been separated from home kitchen sponges and leafy green vegetables [33].
The virus can cause septicemia, pneumonia, and urinary tract infections. K. pneumonia can cause severe pneumonia in the community and has been isolated from flesh and flesh at contact, green leafy vegetables, and kitchen sponges. The pathogenicity of R. ornithinolytica is uncertain but has been associated with fish and its causes of the comorbid syndrome.
Symptoms
Its symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea. S. marcescens have been isolated from refrigerated pork and can cause pneumonia and urinary tract infections [39, 40]. Infection can be contracted by eating contaminated food [41]. L. ambiance is considered an indicator of food contamination [42, 43]. E. cloacae, K. pneumonia, and Pantoea spp. they have been separated from the green vegetables [33, 44] which can explain their recovery from the sponge used with the cutting board. Pantoea spp. is primarily a natural animal and can cause urinary tract infections and diarrhea [45]. C. advice and Klu. Intermedia is mainly present in the respiratory tract. Kluyvera sp. is found in natural sources such as food, water, flies, and sinks.
The emergence of drug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae is a major problem in human health. In the present study, antibiotics Enterobacteriaceae oleate showed that all Es. Cloacae isolate (n = 28) was resistant to amoxicillin, cefalotin, cefuroxime, cefoxitin, and cefuroxime axetil while only one isolate was resistant to cefpodoxime.
Similar to our findings, E. differentiate entities in healthy broilers reported being resistant to amoxicillin [48] while those from green leafy vegetables were resistant to cephalothin, cefuroxime, cefoxitin, ampicillin, and amoxicillin-clavulanate [49]. Increased resistance to antibiotics to pathogenic bacteria is a major public health problem as that will increase foodborne illness and fewer treatment options [50].
Conclusion
In conclusion, female students living in dormitories at the University of Sharjah have shown a lack of general knowledge about good hygiene practices. Kitchen sponges, used for cleaning food stains, were often used for other common purposes and stored for a long time. Leaving the sponges at room temperature for a few days did not reduce the microbial load of the sponges. These sponges were composed of potentially pathogenic bacteria, which developed a code of resistance to various antibiotics.
Students need to be reminded of good hygiene practices to reduce the risk of contaminating food that is ready to be eaten raw, and the kitchen environment including the floor. This study has possible limitations; the sample size was small and the study was conducted with female students as data were collected from women who were not allowed to enter men’s homes; therefore, further research is needed to include more students from both genders of other universities.
Microbiological Safety of Kitchen Sponges Used in Foods
During the cleaning of kitchen utensils, pre-wash and shower steps are usually done using sponges to remove food scraps. Over time, other pieces of food scraps may stick to the sponges. The remaining food, along with the moisture stored in the sponges, provides an ideal environment for the growth and survival of germs.
The report suggests that such highly contaminated sponges may be a major vehicle that contributes to the spread of potentially pathogenic bacteria in the backyard. Research into the importance of disinfection in kitchen areas began 40 years ago. According to preliminary research, raw materials are a major cause of contamination in the kitchen even though the area around the kitchen can transmit live germs.
Thus, many studies reveal that sponges can be important pathogens and can transmit bacteria to areas and vessels, leading to food contamination.
Dirty kitchen environment
Previous studies conducted to evaluate the safety of germs in kitchen utensils and the environment have shown that bacterial profiles of hand towels, dishcloths, tea towels, metal sinks, and work surfaces are important and contribute to food contamination. Foodborne illness-related foodborne illness is often associated with Salmonella. Many other bacterial infections associated with a dirty kitchen environment are Listeria, Campylobacter Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli. S. aureus is one of the 34.3% isolated pathogenic bacteria used by synthetic bath sponges.
Town of Jimma,
The town of Jimma, research, is visited by many travelers as the town is a strategic location in the southwestern part of the country in terms of travel and trade. As a result, many tourists come to the city for several reasons. Therefore, the city and its restaurants are visited by many people from different parts of the country who travel to or from the city. In addition, food retailers are currently growing rapidly. However, there is a shortage of reports on the microbiological safety of kitchen food sponges in Ethiopia including in the city of Jimma.
This prompted current research to test the viral health of synthetic sponges from restaurants in the city of Jimma. Tests were performed on the spread and load of aerobic mesophilic bacteria, coliforms, Enterobacteriaceae, and yeast and worms.
