Microbes can be hard to remove from the rough skin of cantaloupe.
In a
New York Times story about the listeria outbreak linked to cantaloupes grown in Colorado,
Trevor Suslow, a Cooperative Extension specialist at UC Davis, explained how bacteria can adhere to the melon's rough skin. Reporter William Neuman quotes Suslow as saying, “You have these tremendous hiding places, if you will, nooks and crannies, lots of areas for microbes to get in and attach and hide.”
