IFSAC Publishes Latest U.S. Foodborne Illness Source Attribution Estimates
The Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration (IFSAC) has released its latest annual report on foodborne illness source attribution estimates, covering the year 2023 and including Salmonella, Escherichia coli O157, and Listeria monocytogenes.
According to the report, Salmonella, E. coli O157, and L. monocytogenes—along with Campylobacter—cause more than three million foodborne illnesses in the U.S. each year.
Key Attribution Findings by Pathogen
Salmonella illnesses were attributed to a wide variety of foods. More than 75 percent of illnesses were linked to six food categories: chicken (19.1 percent), fruits (14.2 percent), seeded vegetables (13 percent), pork (11.7 percent), other produce (10 percent), and beef (7.8 percent).
E. coli O157 illnesses were most often associated with two food categories. More than 85 percent of illnesses were linked to vegetable row crops (67.9 percent), such as leafy greens, and beef (18.6 percent).
L. monocytogenes illnesses were primarily linked to three food categories. More than 75 percent of illnesses were attributed to dairy (31.9 percent), vegetable row crops (27.4 percent), and fruits (15.9 percent). However, the report noted that the relative rarity of listeriosis outbreaks makes these estimates less reliable than those for other pathogens.
Attribution estimates for Campylobacter were not included in this year’s report. IFSAC stated that outbreak-based estimates for this pathogen may differ substantially from sources of sporadic illnesses and that the agency is continuing to evaluate alternative methods to derive source attribution estimates.
Data and Methodology
IFSAC applied a method consistent with previous reports, with some modifications. Learn about IFSAC's approach in this article authored by members of the collaboration for Food Safety Magazine.
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The report presents annual estimates of the percentages of foodborne illnesses attributed to 17 food categories for Salmonella, E. coli O157, and Listeria monocytogenes. Data for the latest report included 49,848 illnesses linked to 1,390 foodborne illness outbreaks occurring between 1998 and 2023, and for which each confirmed or suspected implicated food was assigned to a single food category, with the analytical approach weighting more recent outbreak data from 2019–2023.
IFSAC noted that comparisons across years should be interpreted with caution, as changes in attribution percentages may reflect shifts in other food categories rather than absolute changes in illness sources.
Public Health Significance
IFSAC stated that the annual attribution estimates are intended to inform food safety decision-making and provide pathogen-specific direction for reducing foodborne illness. The estimates are intended to support a consistent, data-driven approach across federal agencies to prioritize interventions, policies, and resource allocation to protect public health.
IFSAC is a collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS). The group was established in 2011 to improve coordination of federal food safety analytics and address cross-cutting priorities in data collection, analysis, and use.
