CDC: One-third of major outbreaks in 2011 due to produce

Posted: January 11th, 2012 - 3:43pm by Doug Powell

There were 16 multistate outbreaks of foodborne illnesses in the U.S. in 2011, with five of them involving fresh produce, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual year in review.

Coral Beach of The Packer reports fresh produce involved were: romaine lettuce, cantaloupes (two outbreaks), whole papayas and alfalfa and spicy sprouts. Two outbreaks were related to nuts, one involving Turkish pine nuts and the other involving hazelnuts. Lists for recent years are on the CDC’s website.

According to the CDC, 2011 was the most active year in recent history for foodborne illness outbreaks that crossed statelines. In 2010 there were 12, four of them involving fresh produce: alfalfa sprouts (two outbreaks) and shredded romaine lettuce. The other case involved an unnamed Mexican fast food restaurant chain that served a variety of items, including several fresh produce commodities.

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Categories: Food Safety Policy
Tags: Cdc, food safety, Outbreak, policy, Produce

Comments

Anonymous says:

Its a great idea to get more information to the public, but why not post the whole inspection? That information is open to the public already it just makes it easier to see it. In my experience working with regulators and restaurant operators in Utah where the inspections are all online, most people don't really care after awhile. It will get a lot of attention at first then people will forget about it until the next media story on the topic. The majority of the public will continue to eat where they want and comparing inspections won't make much of a difference. So, New Jersey should just post the full reports.

Posted on January 12th, 2012 - 5:42pm

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