ABSTRACT
Foodborne infections are a substantial public health burden. In the United States, an estimated 76 million cases occur each year, affecting one in four individuals (Mead et al. 1999). These infections are associated with 325,000 hospitalizations, or approximately 1 in every 1,000. Patient-related costs have been estimated at up to $6.7 billion, for the principal bacterial foodborne infections alone (Buzby and Roberts 1996). Preventing foodborne diseases depends in part on reducing contamination and preventing recontamination of food with chemicals, as well as with pathogens and their toxins. How best to focus prevention efforts in a rational allocation is a complex issue that depends on our knowledge and our best estimates of where risk enters and propagates. The issue is complex: there are many chemical and biological hazards, many foods, and many points from farm to table at which microbes or other hazards can enter foods, and where microbes can multiply or be eliminated. The issue is complicated further by the fact that, while a body of experience has been built up with chemical risk assessment and comparative risk assessment, the science of microbiological risk assessment is new. Virtually no formal work has been done in comparative risk assessment of foodborne pathogens. The discussion in this chapter presents a preliminary “Lewis and Clark” exploration of the complex terrain of charting microbial hazards through the food supply. It provides a conceptual framework for mapping risks across the food production system, rather than a final answer on how to prevent or minimize risk.
