Food & Agriculture

Food Industry, Consumer Advocates Write in Support of CDC Food Safety Program

CFA joined other consumer advocates, public health groups, food companies and trade associations a letter urging HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to support the support the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), the only active foodborne illness surveillance network in the United States, as well as other programs critical for solving foodborne illness outbreaks within the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. CDC recently announced that the FoodNet program had reduced surveillance to just two foodborne pathogens: Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli(STEC), with six other pathogens—Campylobacter, Cyclospora, Listeria, Shigella, Vibrio and Yersinia—no longer required to be reported. The letter urges support for adequate funding to restore FoodNet and the rest of the CDC Food Safety Program.