A saprophytic food chain goes from dead organic matter of decaying animal or plant bodies to micro-organisms. Rhizopus secretes starch- digesting enzymes or amylase onto bread and absorbs the products of digestion. Bacterial saprophytes and saprophytic fungi are essential to the recycling of nutrients in natural ecosystem. They cause the decay of dead animal and plant material as they convert complex organic compounds to simpler ones. Saprophytism provides a means for saprophytes to obtain nutrients to build material and to be able to reproduce.
Humans use bacteria and molds for ripening cheese.
The natural flavours of butter milk and cream are due in part to the saprophytic bacteria that grow in them. If saprophytism did not exist,the transformation of energy in the food web would be interupted. The dead organisms would not decay and the energy stored in them would not be reused therefore the exhaustion of energy resource would be speeded up. The whole food web would be affected and because the ecosystem is made up of many food webs, the whole ecosystem would be affected eventually. The decay of dead organisms would take a much longer time and the recycling of energy would not be as efficient as it is now.