One woman’s warning about a little-known food contamination called “rope spoilage” has gone viral, and left viewers nervously inspecting their baked goods.
In a widely shared video, @thewandlesswitch explained how heat-resistant bacteria found in ingredients like flour can survive baking, grow in bread, and cause slimy, stringy textures that may lead to food poisoning if eaten.
The TikTok creator warned that rope spoilage can be found in baked goods of all kinds, “whether they are homemade, store bought, freshly baked, or pre-packaged, doesn’t matter.”
In her video, she pulled apart what appears to be cornbread to reveal slimy “stringy stuff” caused by bacillus bacteria in contaminated flour.
Bacillus bacteria can cause food poisoning—don’t eat it!
@thewandlesswitch’s warning about rope spoilage racked up 1.2 millions views. She revealed visual indications of contamination in a clip using spoiled cornbread.
“So I wanna show you what rope spoilage looks like,” she said, pulling apart the bread to reveal strings caused by the presence of bacillus bacteria in contaminated flour.
“If you made a batch at home, throw the rest of it away and check your flour. You might even wanna just throw your flour out,” she said. “If it’s from a store, contact the store or restaurant. Let them know that you found it. Don’t eat it.”
@thewandlesswitch If you ever see this stringy looking stuff inside of your baked goods (store bought, homemade, prepackaged, freshly baked, etc…doesn’t matter) DON’T EAT IT!!! Those stringy things are called rope spoilage and are caused from heat resistant Bacillus spores present in the bread/cookie/brownie/etc. If you made it, might want to pitch the rest of the batch and check your dry goods (usually flour) for contamination. Bacillus bacteria can cause food poisoning. If you purchased the item from the store or a restaurant you should contact them and let them know you found rope spoilage in their items. They can check and/or pull items that might be of concern and check for contamination. Sorry for the poor video but I was trying to do this one handed. 😂 **I’ve already contacted the place it was purchased from & they checked their supply. #ropespoilage #foodspoilage #themoreyouknow💫 #education #fyp ♬ original sound – TheWandlessWitch
What is rope spoilage?
Rope spoilage is caused by heat-resistant, spore-forming bacteria that grow in bread and baked goods. The bacteria can easily contaminate raw ingredients like flour. It survives the baking process and can continue to grow in stored baked goods kept in warm, humid conditions, forming stringy strands visible when bread is pulled apart.
In early stages of contamination, spoiled baked goods will emit an unpleasant odor that smells like rotting fruit or pineapple. The bacteria produces enzymes that degrade bread’s crumb, causing a soft, sticky, slimy texture.
“Thank you I will now hyperfixate on this specific danger and meticulously pull apart every single baked good I consume for the rest of my life,” one commenter wrote.
“Thanks now I have to rip everything in half before I eat it now,” wrote another.
“me thinking it was sticky sugar my whole life 😬 welp Jesus take the wheel”
“😮💨 I’m pretty sure I have eaten this numerous times”
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