Dr. Lawrence Goodridge, a microbiologist in the Ontario Agricultural College, discussed the large outbreak of E. coli infections affecting children at several daycares in Calgary with several news outlets.

Speaking to CBC News, Goodridge said it doesn’t take much E. coli bacteria to cause a full infection. Ingesting just 10 of the single-celled organisms is enough to make someone sick, he said.

In an interview with CTV News, Goodridge explained that most children will recover from an E. coli infection without treatment, but some children can develop serious kidney complications. 

Goodridge is professor at in the Department of Food Science, the director at the Canadian Institute for Food Safety and holds the Leung Family Professorship in Food Science. Since 2020, he has worked with colleagues in the School of Engineering and Department of Pathobiology in wastewater testing.