FoodNet

Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet)

Purpose

THE FOODBORNE DISEASES ACTIVE SURVEILLANCE NETWORK (FOODNET) is the foodborne disease component of CDC’s Emerging Infections Program (EIP). FoodNet is a collaborative project among CDC, the 10 EIP sites, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FoodNet consists of active surveillance for foodborne diseases and related epidemiologic studies designed to help public health officials better understand the epidemiology of foodborne diseases in the United States. FoodNet provides a network for responding to new and emerging foodborne diseases of national importance, monitoring the burden of foodborne diseases, and identifying the sources of specific foodborne diseases.

Goals & Objectives

Determine the burden of foodborne illness in the United States
Monitor trends in the burden of specific foodborne illness over time
Attribute the burden of foodborne illness to specific foods and settings
Develop and assess interventions to reduce the burden of foodborne illness

Activities

In Connecticut, FoodNet conducts statewide, active laboratory-based surveillance for bacterial and parasitic foodborne pathogens on every laboratory-diagnosed case of bacterial pathogens including Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, Escherichia coli O157 and other non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), Listeria monocytogenes, Yersinia enterocolitica, and Vibrio and parasitic organisms including Cryptosporidium and Cyclospora infection. This information is transmitted electronically to CDC. In addition to collecting laboratory-diagnosed cases of foodborne pathogens, investigators at FoodNet sites began active surveillance for hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) (a serious complication of E. coli O157 infection). The result is a comprehensive and timely database of foodborne illness in a well-defined population.
Physician, Laboratory and Population Surveys
Case-control studies to identify risk factors for specific foodborne pathogens.

Publications

FoodNet Publications

Related Links

Government:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – FoodNet: www.cdc.gov/foodnet
National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS): www.cdc.gov/narms
PulseNet: www.cdc.gov/pulsenet
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR): www.cdc.gov/mmwr
Connecticut Department of Public Health: www.dph.state.ct.us/
Gateway to Government Food Safety Information:http://www.foodsafety.gov
Food and Drug Administration: http://www.fda.gov
US Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service: http://www.fsis.usda.gov
FSIS Recall Information Center: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fsis_Recalls/index.asp

Non-Government
Penn State Food Safety http://foodsafety.cas.psu.edu/game.htm
North Carolina State University: www.foodsafetysite.com/
Iowa State University: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsafety/
American Dietetic Association and ConAgra Foods: http://www.homefoodsafety.org/index.jsp
The Bad Bug Book: http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/intro.html

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Project Contact Person

Ruthanne Marcus, MPH
Director, CT FoodNet
Yale Emerging Infections Program
One Church Street, 7th floor
New Haven, CT 06510
(203) 764-4363

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Emerging Infections Program
Yale School of Public Health
1 Church Street, 7th Floor
New Haven, CT 06510
Phone: (203) 764-4360
Fax: (203) 764-4357