Food Contamination Risks at Every Stage of Production

Introduction: Food Safety from Farm to Table

Food contamination can happen at any stage, from farm to table. Understanding the risk factors present at every stage of food production is critical because many foodborne illnesses are preventable. Despite the abundance of knowledge related to food safety, one in six Americans still gets sick from contaminated food each year, amounting to millions of people (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015; United States Department of Health and Human Services, 2016). The most common culprits in food poisoning cases are bacteria, viruses, parasites, molds, toxins, contaminants, and allergens.

In spite of the fact that they are entirely preventable, foodborne illnesses affect one in six Americans. Most causes are well-known, including specific bacteria, viruses, parasites, toxins, molds, and other contaminating substances — not to mention allergies that affect specific at-risk populations. Given all that is known about how to prevent foodborne illness, it remains surprising that contamination continues to occur. In order to improve public health and safety, it is critical to strengthen food safety standards at every level of production, from farm to table.

At the farm level, potential hazards include contaminated water used for irrigation. Threats to food safety in industrialized production facilities include cross-contamination in slaughterhouses. Undercooked meats are a common source of contamination at the food preparation stage, whether in a commercial facility, restaurant, or the home. Food safety is also strongly related to personal and occupational hygiene.

Contamination Across Stages of Food Production

Unfortunately, contamination can occur at every stage of food production, making it difficult in many cases to identify the precise cause of a foodborne illness. For example, if contaminated water is used for crop irrigation, those crops may contain pathogens that cause illness in consumers located in various regions of a country or even around the world. Tracing the root cause of a bacterial or viral infection back to its source can be extremely challenging under these circumstances.

Foods that are processed or stored improperly prior to distribution may be exposed to contaminants or to temperatures that foster bacterial growth. These types of food safety problems may be somewhat easier to investigate, given that processed foods are partially traceable, but identifying the common source of illness across diverse populations remains difficult.

Sick staff can contaminate the food they handle, and facilities that are not cleaned properly can also promote bacterial or viral growth. In cases like these, a group of people who ate at the same restaurant and all became ill can point directly to that establishment as the source of the outbreak.

Food safety concerns extend into the home as well. Undercooking food or leaving food out for extended periods can lead to the growth of illness-causing bacteria, and these cases may be relatively straightforward to identify. For this reason, closer scrutiny must be directed toward the earlier stages of food production — including harvesting, processing, handling, and storage — where contamination events are harder to detect and trace.

The Challenge of Tracing Foodborne Illness

With limited funding and resources, government and private agencies dedicated to food safety need to know where to direct their attention. Research can reveal which stages of food production carry the highest risk so that funding and resources can be properly allocated. Globalized food production and delivery networks complicate these efforts, as it is difficult to carefully control or monitor food safety practices across all source and production countries.

At the farm level, contaminated irrigation water can introduce pathogens into crops before they ever reach a processing facility. In industrialized slaughterhouses, cross-contamination between animal carcasses presents a serious risk. At the distribution stage, improper temperature control during transport can allow bacteria to multiply to dangerous levels. Each handoff in the supply chain represents an additional opportunity for contamination to occur.