Everyday we hear more about large-scale outbreaks of food-borne illnesses or recalls of contaminated food products. Each year millions of children and adults are sickened by the food they have eaten. The government spends billions of dollars annually on food-safety systems, legislation, and health care costs related to food-borne illness. How would you explain the apparent increase in

Question

food-related illness given these efforts? What solutions would you offer to reduce the incidence of food-borne illness?

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Several factors account for the reported increase in food-borne illness, including improved public awareness; improved reporting and record-keeping; increased mass production, processing, and transportation of foods (versus small, local farms); increased demand for imported foods, especially seasonal fruits and vegetables; more meals being eaten in restaurants and fast-food establishments; increased demand for processed and pre-prepared foods; and, inspection systems that are understaffed, underfunded, and out-of-date.

Solutions for reducing the incidence of food-borne illness include: using more foods that are locally-grown; eating out less often and preparing more meals at home; increasing more public education initiatives regarding food safety practices (e.g., hand washing, proper food handling, safe cooking methods); providing additional funding for food inspection programs; implementing safe food storage, handling, and preparation practices at home; delegating food preparation activities to someone else if you are ill.