Food Protection Manager Certification
Foodborne illness and hazards: practice questions
Our Food Protection Manager bank has 26 questions on this topic. Here are 5 of them with answers; the full mock exam draws from every topic, like the real one.
Question 1
Which shellfish toxin causes paralytic shellfish poisoning?
- Saxitoxin from algae
- Ciguatoxin
- Histamine from bacteria
- Botulinum toxin
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A. Saxitoxin from algae — Cooking doesn't destroy shellfish toxins.
Question 2
Hepatitis A is commonly spread through:
- Cooked rice
- Undercooked chicken
- Food handled by infected workers, and contaminated shellfish or produce
- Improperly canned food
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C. Food handled by infected workers, and contaminated shellfish or produce — Vaccination and handwashing help prevent it.
Question 3
Which pathogen is most commonly associated with ground beef?
- Vibrio
- Anisakis
- Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (e.g. O157:H7)
- Ciguatoxin from fish that eat contaminated algae
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C. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (e.g. O157:H7) — Cook ground beef to 155 °F for 17 seconds.
Question 4
Which pathogen is most often linked to ready-to-eat food contaminated by an ill food worker, and spreads easily?
- Ciguatoxin
- Bacillus cereus
- Clostridium botulinum
- Norovirus
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D. Norovirus — Norovirus is a leading cause of foodborne illness.
Question 5
Which pathogen is linked to improperly canned foods, garlic-in-oil and reduced-oxygen packaging?
- Clostridium botulinum
- Campylobacter
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Hepatitis A
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A. Clostridium botulinum — It grows without oxygen and produces a deadly toxin.