Food spoils far faster at room temperature than inside a refrigerator held near 277 K. Which explanation rests on the Arrhenius relationship?

Core Concept

Arrhenius behavior makes k depend exponentially on temperature through e^(-Ea/RT). Cooling from room temperature to refrigerator temperature cuts the fraction of molecular collisions able to clear the spoilage reactions' barriers, shrinking k dramatically even for a modest drop. Slower microbial and enzymatic chemistry means slower spoilage. The activation energies themselves do not change; only the temperature factor moves.