According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, leafy greens are the second most common source of foodborne Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157 outbreaks. From 2009 to 2018, 40 STEC outbreaks in the United States and Canada were linked to leafy greens. The outbreaks translated to 1,212 illnesses, 77 cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome, and 8 deaths.
In a continued effort to curb leafy greens-related outbreaks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) developed the Leafy Greens STEC Action Plan in March 2020, detailing both gaps and opportunities to improve food safety throughout the supply chain. The plan, among several points, underscored the need to improve end-to-end traceability across the leafy greens supply chain, specifically by analyzing how the industry and FDA can rapidly trace a contaminated food to its source. Rapid tracebacks can help shorten outbreaks, narrow product warnings, and limit the sickening of consumers.