Complain about a product or service

CDC Finds Little Progress Containing Foodborne Illness

No major declines in most areas; some problems worsened

April 11, 2008

Food Safety • At Least 2 Deaths Reported in Massive E.Coli Ground Beef Recall • Food Toxin Linked To Liver Cancer • Senate Urged To Pass Food Safety Modernization Act • Consumers Have Little Trust That Food They Buy is Safe and Healthy • Consumers Union Opposes USDA Proposal On Salad Safety • New Food Registry Enables Quick Reporting of Dangerous Products • Nothing Simple about Food Dating, Expiration Dates or 'Use-By' Dates • Feds Announce New Food Safety Strategies • House Passes Food Safety Bill • Feds Seize Kentucky Livestock Kept In "Filthy Conditions" • FDA Tries To Improve Egg Safety • Tainted Dry Milk Recall Continues To Grow • Salmonella Scare Prompts Dairy Recall • Most Consumers Lack Confidence In Food Safety, Survey Says • House Committee Unanimously Passes Food Safety Bill • Food Safety Bill Aired In House • House Committee Moves Forward On Food Safety Legislation • Illinois Meat Packer Recalls 95,898 Pounds Of Beef • Alfalfa Sprouts Linked to Salmonella • Food Safety Results Level Off • Sprouts Recalled Due To Possible Listeria • FDA Warns About Listeria in Salmon • Food Industry Accused of Big Tobacco's Bad Habits • FDA Closes Tortilla Plant • Surface Water May Be Source Of Salmonella • Key Senator Blasts FDA Over Food Safety > • FDA Rolls Out Food Safety Plan • Brits Get Treats, Yanks Get Tricks From Food Companies • Hartz Recalls Rawhide Chips After Possible Salmonella Contamination • Vermont Firm Recalls Possibly-Tainted Ground Beef • Beef Sent to Puerto Rico May Be Contaminated with E. coli • Technology Offers Revolution in Food Safety Testing • Chinese Gorillas Fall Ill as Melamine Scandal Widens • Alfalfa Sprouts Recalled in Salmonella Outbreak • CDC Gives "All Clear" On Salmonella Outbreak • One Death Reported in Oklahoma E. coli Outbreak • Feds Approve Irradiation of Spinach, Lettuce • FDA Issues Warning About Frozen Seafood • Whole Foods Extends Beef Recall • Whole Foods Recalls Fresh Ground Beef • Six New E. coli Cases Reported In Massachusetts --- • More ...

Salmonella and E. coli outbreaks have focused public attention on food safety issues in recent months. But the Centers For Disease Control reports that recent efforts to curtail incidents of foodborne illnesses have yet to produce much in the way of results.

The findings are from 2007 data reported to the CDC as part of the agency's Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network, FoodNet. FoodNet monitors foodborne disease and conducts studies to help health officials better understand the nature of the problem.

FoodNet monitors foodborne disease and conducts studies to help health officials better understand the nature of the problem.

Campylobacter, Listeria, Salmonella, Shigella, E.coli O157, Vibrio, and Yersinia did not decline significantly, and the estimated incidence of Cryptosporidium increased when compared with the previous three years, 2004-2006.

Although there have been significant declines in the incidence of some foodborne infections since surveillance began in 1996, these declines all occurred before 2004.

"The results show that prevention efforts have been partly successful, but there has been little further progress in the most recent years," said Dr. Robert Tauxe, deputy director of CDC′s Division of Foodborne, Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases. "More needs to be done to make our food safer."

Consumers can reduce their risk for foodborne illness by following safe food-handling recommendations and by avoiding the consumption of unpasteurized milk, raw or undercooked oysters, raw or undercooked eggs, raw or undercooked ground beef, and undercooked poultry," the CDC said.

The risk for foodborne illness can also be decreased by choosing in-shell pasteurized eggs, irradiated ground meat, and high-pressure-treated oysters.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.

Share		Follow us on Twitter.