[Growster...]

Is anyone bothered about the notion that leaving a cut onion in the open attracts all sorts of germs?

We've always left bits around, and if it's the case, then what happens to all the onions used in salads and on display in every shop and restaurant in the world...

[BabbyAnn]

A lot of bacteria, yeast and fungal spores are airborne and land on surfaces - I don't think cut onions attract germs any different to other food stuffs left out standing, and they are consumed and digested in the stomach usually with no ill effects.  The danger is when bacterial numbers are then allowed to grow by keeping food at warm temperatures over long periods - basically incubating them, and specifically those pathogenic bacteria that can cause serious illnesses such as E. coli and Staph aureus.  Other bacteria that get the opportunity to incubate in those conditions tend to just spoil the food which we recognise, such as sour milk, and our noses and taste buds tell us it has gone off and not good to eat.

If you had any concerns, think about naturally dried products such as peppercorns or fruit that are left out to dry over days and then handled by people before being packed - being dried, the bacterial numbers do not grow as quickly which is why it is considered a good way to preserve certain foods, but the load per dried item is probably a lot higher than a salad item left out on display 

[8doubles]

Is anyone bothered about the notion that leaving a cut onion in the open attracts all sorts of germs?

We've always left bits around, and if it's the case, then what happens to all the onions used in salads and on display in every shop and restaurant in the world...

This probably goes back to the days when an onion in one form or another was the cure for everything, a hot boiled onion bandaged to the head was a sure cure for ear infections !

The germ attracting qualities of a cut onion was a positive thing and would prevent everything from the common cold to the plague.
........Provided you did not eat it !

[Growster...]

Thanks Babbyann and 8doubles, that is well-described and informative, but are you really concerned at all?

I'm not, and neither is Mrs Growster.

And we've got a wooden chopping board...