Curious about how race and socioeconomic factors factor into foodborne illness risk, a number of researchers over the past few years have looked at foodborne illness risk among low-income and minority populations. Study findings show increased risk among minority populations, but researchers experience difficulty ascertaining whether disparities exist at the
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Food Fraud: Money Scam and Health Hazard
Despite the common belief that food fraud in the United States is a rarity, the globalized nature of our food supply chain means many of our favorite foods and ingredients travel far and wide before they reach our plates, making adulteration and other types of food fraud a considerate problem
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Food Safety Challenges: Bridging the Gap Between the Public and Private Sectors
Until recently, just a few standard methods were used for foodborne pathogen identification. But these days, technological advances, including culture independent testing and whole genome sequencing, are quickly changing the space and speeding the testing process, but also sometimes complicating it. Though government agencies maintain foremost control in protecting our
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Lab Testing: Hunting for Pathogens on Poultry
The mishandling or undercooking of raw chicken meat associated with the recent Foster Farms Salmonella outbreak has sickened nearly 340 people across 20 states and Puerto Rico since March and has caused concern among consumers, consumer groups, and food-safety advocates about the safety of our food system and the efficacy
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Emerging Pathogens: Antibiotic Resistance Slowly Growing in Salmonella
The number of antimicrobial-resistant Salmonella serotypes hasn’t increased drastically in recent years, but drug-resistant Salmonella continues to pose a public health threat in the United States, particularly as resistance spreads across classes of drugs, necessitates the use of more expensive drugs, makes treatment less effective, and, in worse-case scenarios, leaves
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What Should You Know About Diabetes and Foodborne Illness?
Similar to any individual living with a weakened immune system or compromised body systems due to chronic disease, those with diabetes-related complications may be susceptible to increased risk and impact of foodborne illnesses. One reason those with diabetes may suffer increased impact of a foodborne illness is because diabetes-related complications
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Social Media Apps Use Twitter to Track Illness Outbreaks
The opportunity to use social media platforms to report and track foodborne illnesses is becoming increasingly feasible as more and more people use social media to discuss the ins and outs of daily life. In April, a few volunteer developers in Chicago launched an app called Foodborne Chicago, which
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