The FDA has released two new tools in their foodborne illness investigations: EIS (Executive Incident Summary Abstracts) and FOOD (Foodborne Outbreak Overview of Data). The EIS will be released after an outbreak is over, providing high level information about the outbreak and any new information that may have been discovered since the investigation ended. FOOD … Read more
The CDC says that seven pathogens cause 9.9 million illnesses every year in the United States. This estimate is used to allocate resources and prioritize interventions. The seven pathogens are Campylobacter, Clostridium perfringens, invasive Listeria monocytogenes, norovirus, Salmonella, Toxoplasma gondii, and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). And those illnesses cause about 53,000 hospitalizations and 931 … Read more
A new report from U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) found that hospitalizations and deaths from food doubled in 2024. The report, titled Food For Thought 2025, states that hospitalizations and deaths were the highest last year in five years. Food contaminated with Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, and E. coli increased by 41%. and 98% of … Read more
One-third of food outbreaks are linked to non-irradiated foods, according to a report in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Emerging Infectious Diseases report for June 2024. Those foods are eligible for irradiation treatment, which kills pathogens and extends the life of produce and other foods. Of 482 outbreaks, 155 were linked to an … Read more
Salmonella in raw breaded stuffed chicken products is an adulterant, according to a policy finalized today by the USDA. These items have been linked to many outbreaks in the United States over the last few years. The proposal was released in April 2023. These items are declared adulterated when they exceed a specific threshold (1 … Read more
It’s time for the FDA’s annual warning about consuming raw flour, since the holiday season is a traditional time for a lot of baking. There have been many outbreaks linked to raw flour and products made with raw flour, such the Salmonella outbreak linked to recalled Gold Medal flour earlier this year, and the E … Read more
There are more FDA Outbreak Investigations closed with no answers, in the just updated FDA CORE Outbreak Investigation Table. So far nine outbreaks this year have ended unsolved. For the Cryptosporidium outbreak that sickened at least 11 people, the outbreak is over and the investigation has ended. The only action the FDA took in this … Read more
The CDC has identified another reoccurring E. coli O157:H7 strain that is linked to leafy greens outbreaks, according to the September issue of that agency’s Emerging Infectious Diseases Dispatch. This strain is in addition to the other reoccurring strain that was mentioned by the CDC in August’s Dispatch. Bacterial strains can be identified as reoccurring, … Read more
Sick restaurant employees cause 40% of foodborne illness outbreaks, according to an article in the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report for the week of June 2, 2023. Hundreds of foodborne illness outbreaks associated with retail food establishments are reported every year to the CDC. The period of time … Read more
A new study has confirmed that raw milk is linked to foodborne illness. During the time period of 2013 to 2018, 75 outbreaks that caused 675 illnesses were linked to unpasteurized milk. Of these illnesses, almost half were among children and teenagers aged o to 19 years. Given that the consumption of raw milk is … Read more