THURSDAY, April 18, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- There's been a substantial drop in foodborne infections in the United States, largely because of better farm-to-processing plant safety programs, federal officials reported today.
Data from the government's nine-state FoodNet surveillance program shows that infections from the four major bacteria that cause food poisoning declined by more than 20 percent in 2001, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Weekly Morbidity and Mortality Report.
That adds up to "tens of thousands of diagnosed cases of illness prevented now, as compared to back in 1996," says Dr. Robert Tauxe, a CDC foodborne diseases expert.
Not much credit for the decline goes to American homemakers, Tauxe says. CDC surveys show there have been "no major shifts in what the population is doing," he says. People still tend to do unsafe things in the kitchen, such as eating their beef rare and their eggs undercooked.
Instead, Tauxe credits efforts such as an egg quality assurance program adopted in 13 states that extends from farmers to retailers.
"This is one example of how the approach could be extended back to the farm," he says. "The early evidence we have suggests that this broad approach could be applied to more foods."
Merle Pearson, deputy undersecretary of food safety for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, also gives credit to regulations contained in his agency's pathogen reduction program for meat and poultry plants.
"We are advising processors to put into place further risk-reduction systems," Pearson says. "There has been a 24 percent decline [in food-processing plant problems] since 2000."
The FoodNet program began in 1996, collecting information on foodborne illnesses in five states. It now monitors nine states that contain 13 percent of the American population.
Since 1996, FoodNet data show:
- a 27 percent reduction in infections by Campylobacter, often found in chicken and associated with the failure of food handlers to wash their hands;
- a 35 percent drop in infections by Listeria, often found in dairy products;
- a 21 percent reduction in infections by E. coli, commonly found in meat;
- a 15 percent decrease in salmonella infections, usually contracted from poultry or eggs.
However, some problems persist, Tauxe says. Infections caused by one strain of E. coli have increased, and fighting it "will not be simple," he says. "It can be transmitted by food, eater, personal contact and direct animal exposure."
Children remain particularly vulnerable to foodborne illnesses. A study has begun to identify better ways to prevent salmonella and Campylobacter infections in young children, Tauxe says.
New technology can help reduce the rate of infection even further, he says: "There is a whole arsenal of potential interventions that could be implemented."
Pearson says basic rules of cleanliness are still important: "There is a lot of emphasis on instructing farmers about better sanitation to reduce contamination on the farm level."
What To Do
You can help keep your food safe by following the obvious rules, including washing hands before preparing meals, cooking food thoroughly, and refrigerating foods properly.
For advice on how to keep food safe, visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. To learn more about foodborne infections, go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
