Colorado State University Extension
SafeFood Rapid Response Network


SAFEFOOD NEWS - Summer 1998 - Vol 2 / No. 4

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FoodNet Shows FBI More Prevalent in Summer

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service(FSIS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating with state health departments and local investigators at seven locations across the country to more accurately identify the incidence of foodborne illness (FBI) in the United States. Through FoodNet, the agencies involved will be more effective at tracking the incidence of foodborne illness. FoodNet will also allow agencies to monitor the effectiveness of food safety programs in reducing foodborne illness.

FoodNet has been actively collecting data since January 1996. The population under surveillance is up to 14.7 million people, or approximately 6% of the US population. Data is collected through population-based surveys, laboratory surveys, physician surveys, and case-control studies. The plan is for FoodNet to more accurately estimate the actual number of people who become sick with diarrhea that can be attributed to bacterial pathogens each year. More precise estimates are needed to evaluate food safety reforms and program changes as well as how they will affect the incidence of foodborne disease. FoodNet specifically targets the following bacterial pathogens: Campylobacter, E. coli 0157:H7, Listeria, Salmonella, Shigella, Vibrio, and Yersinia.

Results from the first year found that 7,259 laboratory-confirmed diarrheal cases were attributable to the seven bacterial pathogens targeted by FoodNet. The specific case breakdown by cause was, 45% by Campylobacter, 29.5% by Salmonella, 17.2% by Shigella, 5.3% by E. coli 0157:H7, 1.9% by Yersinia, 0.9% by Listeria, and 0.2% by Vibrio. The results also showed that foodborne illness was more likely to occur in the summer than during other months and that half of the cases involving E.coli 0157:H7 occurred between June and August.

Why does foodborne illness increase during the summer? The following reasons have been suggested:

• More parties, picnics, and community events are held. The more food-handlers and methods involved the greater the risk of food being mishandled.
• Bacteria grow faster at warmer temperatures.
• More food is cooked outdoors, which can make it more difficult to check if it is thoroughly cooked.
• More opportunities exist for cross-contamination to occur. For example, placing cooked meat on the plate that held the raw product prior to cooking.

As more foodborne illness data is collected, FoodNet will become more reliable as an accurate indicator of the prevalence of foodborne illness and its causes. Additional information on FoodNet can be found at the following URL: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/background/bfoodnet.htm.

The Morbidity and Mortality Monthly Report which published the results from FoodNet's first year is available through the Internet at http://www.cdc.gov/epo/mmwr/mmwr.html.

Both of these web sites can also be accessed as links from the SafeFood web page at

http://www.colostate.edu/Orgs/safefood.

Sources:

• USDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline, Food Safety Features, May 1998.
• USDA, FSIS, Backgrounder, Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), February, 1998.
• CDC, Morbidity and Mortality Monthly Report (MMWR), Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network, 1996. March 28, 1997.

Updated Monday, August 29, 2011