# Can anthrax be made from scratch? - Not a 'how to' question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 17, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016 "2001-10-17T17:28:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/1 "2001-10-17T17:28:59Z")
I was wondering how people could have gotten anthrax to mail. Is it possible to make anthrax from scratch or do samples have to be stolen from somewhere? Please, no details if from scratch is possible. Haj ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/2 "2001-10-17T17:42:09Z")
Anthrax is a lifeform. ---
**Author:** ![tramp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@tramp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tramp)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/3 "2001-10-17T17:45:01Z")
Well if you find an animal who died of anthrax, I think you could get the still living bacteria from the animal and then grow it at home for a sort of ghetto batch… but it still wouldnt be powderized to send through the mail ---
**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/4 "2001-10-17T17:46:11Z")
No, you can’t make it from scratch. In theory you could collect it from the great outdoors, but that would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. However, as recently as a few years ago, pretty much any Tom, Dick, or Harry could order it from a biological supply house. Can’t do that anymore. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/5 "2001-10-17T18:27:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lissener \* > \*\*Anthrax is a lifeform. \*\* Did you really think that I didn’t know that? One can make mold (a lifeform) by setting out a petri dish with a piece of bread on it. Everyone else, thanks for your answers. Haj ---
**Author:** ![scotth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@scotth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotth)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/6 "2001-10-17T19:04:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hajario \* > \*\*One can make mold (a lifeform) by setting out a petri dish with a piece of bread on it. > > \*\* I would say you weren’t “making mold from scratch” here. “making anthrax from scratch” implies creating anthrax from non living material. This isn’t possible (for now, at least) Harvesting and culturing anthrax is quite possible. ---
**Author:** ![starfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@starfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starfish)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/7 "2001-10-18T03:47:50Z")
The news today was saying the anthrax used was “natural”, made from scratch anthrax. Common antibiotics will kill it [save the people]. Military anthrax is more immune to common antibiotics [more likely to kill people]. ---
**Author:** ![coosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@coosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coosa)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anthrax-be-made-from-scratch-not-a-how-to-question/88016/8 "2001-10-18T05:10:24Z")
**hajario** , if you can obtain some anthrax spores, it is not hard to grow more. You would, however, need some particular lab equipment and the know-how to use it. Not something you’re average Tom, Dick, and Harry can do, but a college student with some classes in bio-sciences and a couple of reference books could handle it. Most lab technicians could do it, both veterinary and medical. Probably not that hard to find anthrax spores in nature, if you know where to look - there was a really bad outbreak in Texas recently, mostly affecting the wild deer population.