The cleanability of stainless steel using a starch soil was investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy. Two cleaning regimes were examined: high pressure spray system removed absorbed material much more effectively than mechanical action. Surface defects on the stainless steel acted as sites: for soil retention. When starch was combined with the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium the two components were removed at different rates from the surface caused by difference in size between the starch molecules and bacterium cells.