Mission

In 1906, Americans were first awakened to the appalling reality of the meat packing industry’s abusive practices with Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle. President Theodore Roosevelt and the American public demanded action to correct this deplorable situation, and just four months after the publication of The Jungle, Congress passed both the Food & Drug Act of 1906 and the Meat Inspection Act of 1906. While these “Acts,” as they are commonly referred to, provided major reforms, the way our food is grown, processed and sold has changed drastically in the past 100 years, creating new problems that did not exist in 1906.

Today, foodborne illness is a serious public health issue. Consider these facts:

• According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 76 million are sickened, 325,000 are hospitalized and 5,000 die each year from foodborne illnesses.
• According to one USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) report , “Foodborne illnesses account for about 1 of every 100 U.S. hospitalizations and 1 of every 500 U.S. deaths.”
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimates 2 to 3 percent of foodborne illness victims develop secondary long-term medical complications resulting in over 1.5 million lingering health problems per year.
• In May 2001, the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) estimated that Campylobacter, Salmonella, E. coli , Listeria Monocytogenes and Toxoplasma gondii cause $6.9 billion in medical costs, lost productivity and premature deaths each year in the United Sates.
• Children, the elderly, pregnant and post-partum women and individuals with compromised immune systems are at highest risk of developing complications from food-borne illness.
• In 2006, the United States population reached 300 million; it is expected that before 2040, the U.S. population will exceed 400 million. Coupled with that, there are new food safety challenges on the horizon – from the threat of bioterrorism to avian flu. Certainly, foodborne illness will remain a serious public health issue in the years to come.

Founded in 2006 to help America create innovative, science-based solutions for the food challenges of the 21st Century, CFI believes that it is imperative that federal, state and local government, as well as farmers; food processors/distributors/retailers; medical providers; educators; policy makers and consumers share the responsibility of building an environment that promotes food safety throughout the farm to fork continuum. No one sector can achieve this goal alone. CFI is dedicated to working together through research, education and advocacy to develop better food protections and ultimately improve public health.