Nearly 50 million Americans contract food poisoning each year and 3,000 die, according to new research published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That amounts to one-sixth of the entire U.S. population coming down sick annually from consuming pathogens that cause illness of varying severity.

 

Of all food-poisoning cases, only 20% are caused by known pathogens, such as Salmonella or E. coli. The other 80% are produced by pathogens or other causes that scientists know little or nothing about it.

 

The findings come after several years of large recalls involving spinach, peanut butter and other foods that have raised questions about the federal regulation of the food industry. Congress is considering legislation that would expand the Food and Drug Administration’s authority to police suppliers and processors of food.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

1 in 6 Americans Gets Food Poisoning Every Year, CDC Finds (by Lea Winerman, PBS News Hour)

How Safe Is Our Food? (by J. Glenn Morris, Jr., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) (pdf)

Cost of Foodborne Illnesses Estimated at $152 Billion a Year (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

10 FDA-Regulated Foods Most Likely to Cause Illness (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)