Where does foodborne illness happen-in the home, at foodservice, or elsewhere-and does it matter?

05.nov.09
Foodborne Pathogens and Disease. November 2009, 6(9): 1121-1123
C.J. Jacob, D.A. Powell

Abstract
Foodservice professionals, politicians, and the media are often cited making claims
as to which locations most often expose consumers to foodborne pathogens. Many
times, it is implied that most foodborne illnesses originate from food consumed
where dishes are prepared to order, such as restaurants or in private homes. The
manner in which the question is posed and answered frequently reveals a speculative
bias that either favors homemade or foodservice meals as the most common source of
foodborne pathogens. Many answers have little or no scientific grounding, while
others use data compiled by passive surveillance systems. Current surveillance
systems focus on the place where food is consumed rather than the point where food
is contaminated. Rather than focusing on the location of consumption-and blaming
consumers and others-analysis of the steps leading to foodborne illness should
center on the causes of contamination in a complex farm-to-fork food safety system.