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Bloomberg ranked outbreaks involving ingested foods from 2007 to 2013 based on the number of people infected. Illnesses in all of the U.S. states and the District of Columbia were counted.
Excluded were outbreaks involving contact with live animals, pet food, workers in laboratories, restaurant chains where no particular food could be traced and travel to a foreign country.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
January 16, 2014
Rank | Food | Illness | Number of people infected | Number of states affected | Year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Eggs t | Salmonella | 1,939 | 10 | 2010 |
2 | Jalapeño peppers and Serrano peppers | Salmonella | 1,442 | 44 | 2008 |
3 | Peanut butter | Salmonella | 714 | 46 | 2009 |
4 | Prepackaged salad mix (Taylor Farms de Mexico) | Cyclospora | 631 | 25 | 2013 |
5 | Chicken (Foster Farms, California) | Salmonella | 430 | 23 | 2013 |
6 | Ground tuna product (Nakaochi Raw Scraped) | Salmonella | 425 | 29 | 2012 |
6 | Peanut butter (Peter Pan, Great Value) | Salmonella | 425 | 44 | 2007 |
8 | Pot pies (Banquet) | Salmonella | 272 | 35 | 2007 |
8 | Red and black pepper/Italian style meats | Salmonella | 272 | 45 | 2010 |
10 | Cantaloupes (Chamberlain Farms Produce, Inc.) | Salmonella | 261 | 24 | 2012 |
11 | Alfalfa sprouts | Salmonella | 235 | 14 | 2009 |
12 | Kosher broiled chicken livers | Salmonella | 190 | 6 | 2011 |
13 | Pomegranate seeds (Turkey) | Hepatitis A | 162 | 10 | 2013 |
14 | Cantaloupes (Jensen Farms) | Listeria | 147 | 28 | 2011 |
15 | Tiny Greens Alfalfa Sprouts or Spicy Alfalfa Sprouts (Jimmy John's restaurant outlets) t | Salmonella | 140 | 27 | 2010 |
16 | Ground turkey | Salmonella | 136 | 34 | 2011 |
17 | Chicken (Foster Farms, Washington) | Salmonella | 134 | 13 | 2013 |
18 | Mangoes t | Salmonella | 127 | 15 | 2012 |
19 | Whole, fresh imported papayas (Mexico) | Salmonella | 106 | 25 | 2011 |
20 | Shellfish | Vibriosis | 104 | 13 | 2013 |
21 | Cucumbers (Daniel Cardenas Izabal and Miracle Greenhouse of Culiacán, Mexico) | Salmonella | 84 | 18 | 2013 |
22 | Prepackaged cookie dough (Nestle Toll House) | Escherichia coli | 72 | 30 | 2009 |
23 | Veggie Booty (Robert’s American Gourmet) | Salmonella | 65 | 20 | 2007 |
24 | Romaine lettuce | Escherichia coli | 60 | 10 | 2011 |
25 | Cantaloupes (Honduras) | Salmonella | 51 | 16 | 2008 |