Article No: MS0022017 Dr. Madhu Aman Sharma Lead Auditor ISO 22000 Dr. Madhu Aman Sharma- Food Safety pg. 1 Title: Importance of Food Safety “Food safety is a scientific discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness. This includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potentially severe health hazards” The great majority of people will experience a foodborne disease at some point in their lives. This highlights the importance of making sure the food we eat is not contaminated with potentially harmful bacteria, parasites, viruses, toxins and chemicals. Food can become contaminated at any point during production, distribution and preparation. Everyone along the production chain, from producer to consumer, has a role to play to ensure the food we eat does not cause diseases. In recent years, large multi-state or nationwide foodborne outbreaks have become more commonly recognized. Improved surveillance systems in the United States are better at identifying outbreaks that would previously have been missed. Changing patterns in global food production have resulted in food being distributed over large distances. This combined with increasing integration and consolidation of agriculture and food production can result in a contaminated food rapidly causing a geographically widespread outbreak. Public health officials investigate outbreaks to control them, to prevent additional illnesses, and to learn how to prevent similar outbreaks from happening in the future. Here we explain how the public health community detects, investigates, and controls foodborne disease outbreaks. Foodborne illnesses are a burden on public health and contribute significantly to the cost of health care. Each year foodborne illnesses sicken 48 million Americans (approximately 17% of people in the United States) and lead to 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. A small percentage of these illnesses are the result of identified foodborne outbreaks, which happen when two or more cases of similar illnesses result from eating the same food. Investigations of foodborne outbreaks, along with analyses of data on the germs that make us sick and behaviors that contribute to food contamination, help us identify where we can make improvements in the country’s food safety system.3 This system spans from growing the food on the farm through processing, packing, distribution, transportation, and storage, to preparing it to be eaten. Why Is Food Safety Important? Foodborne illnesses are a preventable and underreported public health problem. These illnesses are a burden on public health and contribute significantly to the cost of health care. They also present a major challenge to certain groups of people. Although anyone can get a foodborne illness, some people are at greater risk. For example: Children younger than age 4 have the highest incidence of laboratory-confirmed infections from some foodborne pathogens, including Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, Salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157, Shigella, and Yersinia. People older than age 50 and those with reduced immunity are at greater risk for hospitalizations and death from intestinal pathogens commonly transmitted through foods. Safer food promises healthier and longer lives and less costly health care, as well as a more resilient food industry. Estimates of foodborne illness can be used to direct food safety policy and interventions. We used data from active and passive surveillance and other sources to estimate that each year 31 major pathogens acquired in the United States caused 9.4 million episodes of foodborne illness (90% credible interval [CrI] 6.6–12.7 million), 55,961 hospitalizations (90% CrI 39,534–75,741), and 1,351 deaths (90% CrI 712–2,268). Most (58%) illnesses were caused by norovirus, followed by nontyphoidal Salmonella spp. (11%), Clostridium perfringens (10%), and Campylobacter spp. (9%). Leading causes of hospitalization were nontyphoidal Salmonella spp. (35%), norovirus (26%), Campylobacter spp. (15%), and Toxoplasma gondii (8%). Leading causes of death were nontyphoidal Salmonella spp. (28%), T. gondii (24%), Listeria monocytogenes (19%), and norovirus (11%). These estimates cannot be compared with
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Article No: MS0022017 Dr. Madhu Aman Sharma Lead Auditor ISO 22000
Dr. Madhu Aman Sharma- Food Safety pg. 1
Title: Importance of Food Safety
“Food safety is a scientific discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness. This
includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potentially severe health hazards”
The great majority of people will experience a foodborne disease at some point in their lives. This highlights the importance of making
sure the food we eat is not contaminated with potentially harmful bacteria, parasites, viruses, toxins and chemicals.
Food can become contaminated at any point during production, distribution and preparation. Everyone along the production chain, from
producer to consumer, has a role to play to ensure the food we eat does not cause diseases.
In recent years, large multi-state or nationwide foodborne outbreaks have become more commonly recognized. Improved surveillance
systems in the United States are better at identifying outbreaks that would previously have been missed. Changing patterns in global
food production have resulted in food being distributed over large distances. This combined with increasing integration and
consolidation of agriculture and food production can result in a contaminated food rapidly causing a geographically widespread
outbreak.
Public health officials investigate outbreaks to control them, to prevent additional illnesses, and to learn how to prevent s imilar
outbreaks from happening in the future. Here we explain how the public health community detects, investigates, and controls
foodborne disease outbreaks.
Foodborne illnesses are a burden on public health and contribute significantly to the cost of health care. Each year foodborne illnesses
sicken 48 million Americans (approximately 17% of people in the United States) and lead to 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths.
A small percentage of these illnesses are the result of identified foodborne outbreaks, which happen when two or more cases of
similar illnesses result from eating the same food. Investigations of foodborne outbreaks, along with analyses of data on the germs
that make us sick and behaviors that contribute to food contamination, help us identify where we can make improvements in the
country’s food safety system.3 This system spans from growing the food on the farm through processing, packing, distribution,
transportation, and storage, to preparing it to be eaten.
Why Is Food Safety Important?
Foodborne illnesses are a preventable and underreported public health problem. These illnesses are a burden on public health and
contribute significantly to the cost of health care. They also present a major challenge to certain groups of people. Although anyone
can get a foodborne illness, some people are at greater risk. For example:
Children younger than age 4 have the highest incidence of laboratory-confirmed infections from some foodborne pathogens, including