Foodborne disease outbreaks in France between 1996 and 2005

This article summarizes the key data on foodborne disease outbreaks (Tiac) reported in France over the period 1996-2005.A total 5,847 outbreaks were reported during this period, causing 80,351 recorded cases of which 7,364 (9%) were admitted to hospital. Sixty-four percent of these foodborne outbreaks occurred in institutional or public catering outlets. It was possible to identify the causative agent in the food and (or) human samples from 46% of the outbreaks. Salmonella was isolated in 64% of the outbreaks involving the identified agent. Resurgences of salmonella outbreaks have been observed in summer periods while resurgent winter outbreaks are related to foodborne viruses. Eggs or products containing raw or little-cooked eggs were responsible for 30% of the Tiac outbreaks where a food item could be incriminated. Over half these factors were linked to errors in the preparation process or excessive delays between preparation and consumption. Visit http://www.invs.sante.fr/BEH to find out more.