Each year, produce accounts for half of the foodborne disease outbreaks in the United States. To determine if there is a link between the geographic location of early case and specific ports of entry from imported produce, scientists analyzed date from five produce-related outbreaks between 1998 and 2008. A link would lead to potentially quicker identification of implicated products. The US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released a joint report that compares outbreaks linked to domestic produce with those linked to imported products. The report suggests that identifying ports of entry of produce that are responsible for causing multi-state outbreaks may be possible by using geospatial distribution of early-onset cases of foodborne illnesses.
Learn more about the report.