Symptoms of perfringens poisoning are usually mild diarrhea and gas pains, which begin from 8 to 24 hours after consumption. Perfringens is often found in cooked beef, turkey, gravy, dressing, stews and casseroles. In addition, because perfringens is anaerobic and so does not thrive in the air, cooks reduce the risk of poisoning by dividing large portions into small dishes for serving. Dividing buffet type foods into several small dishes exposes more of the food to the air, thus reducing the anaerobic conditions in which perfringens thrive. Botulism Botulism is the name for the poison which is caused by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum.
Botulism is very rare, but it is deadly.
The botulism-causing bacteria is widespread in the environment and present in the soil and water. Since the canning and vacuum processes force air out of food, the botulinum bacteria thrives in improperly processed foods. The risk is greatest for foods which are canned or vacuumed at home by cooks who fail to follow the safe-handling procedures. Someone who eats botulism-contaminated food will develop symptoms in from 12 to 48 hours. The poison attacks the nervous system causing double vision, droopy eyelids, trouble swallowing and difficult with breathing.