Surveillance for Sporadic Foodborne Disease in the 21st Century: The FoodNet Perspective

Abstract

How safe is our food? Can it be made safer? In the United States alone, foodborne infections have been estimated to cause ∼76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and 5000 deaths each year [1]. The annual cost of foodborne illnesses caused by the 4 most common bacterial pathogens alone (Salmonella strains, Shigella and Campylobacter species, and Escherichia coli) has been estimated at $6.9 billion [2]. Measuring improvements in the safety of the nation's food supply is, therefore, a challenging but critical public health priority [3].