UK foodborne disease cases fall by 19 per cent

UK - Regulation, training and public information campaigns are having a dramatic effect on the reduction of foodborne diseases in the UK, with the number of cases of people getting sick falling by 1.5 million over the five years to the end of 2005.
calendar icon 12 October 2006
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However, while cases of Campylobacter and Salmonella have fallen, E. coli and Listeria are on the upswing. The number of Listeria cases has almost doubled since 2000, a troubling indication that more work needs to be done in combating that pathogen.

The figures are contained in a Food Standards Agency (FSA) report, released ahead of the regulator's board meeting on 12 October. The figures, serve to emphasise the effects of an increasing amount of food safety regulations over the past five years -- both at the EU and the national level. The regulations are driven by the increasing public concern about the safety of the food chain and have resulting in more costs and greater public scrutiny for processors.

The report reveals that 53,052 laboratory-reported cases of foodborne pathogens were reported in 2005, representing a reduction of 19.2 per cent compared with the baseline figure for 2000.

Source: Food Production Daily
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