The Korea Food Research Institute on Monday said the spicy food kimchi can help prevent food poisoning.

The institute's food safety research team said its tests showed that 99 percent of germs that cause food poisoing died within four hours after kimchi was injected.

Kimchi fermented at room temperature was most effective against salmonella and refrigerated kimchi against listeria. Vibrios also died ten minutes after contact with kimchi.

The institute will develop functional kimchi products based on its research findings.