CDC Cuts FoodNet Surveillance from 8 Pathogens to 2....Is This a Thing?

FoodNet is a collaboration between CDC, USDA, FDA, and 10 state health departments that tracks infections caused by eight pathogens in a surveillance area that includes 16% of the U.S. population.

Personnel at each FoodNet site routinely communicate with clinical laboratories and collect detailed information about infections.  

FoodNet conducts laboratory surveys, physician surveys, and population surveys to collect information about each of these steps. This information is used to calculate estimates of the actual number of people who become ill. Other information is used to estimate the proportion of these illnesses transmitted by food.

So how important is this if it only covers 16% of the population and it is used for determining estimates?  Is limited funding better spent on developing the entire reporting system?  I don't know, but it would be better if there was more information on how this is expected to impact food safety one way or the other.

https://www.food-safety.com/articles/10646-cdc-slashes-foodnet-surveillance-from-eight-foodborne-pathogens-to-two

CDC Slashes FoodNet Surveillance From Eight Foodborne Pathogens to Two

By Bailee Henderson

August 26, 2025

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has made major cuts to its Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) surveillance program, citing inadequate funding.

According to a CDC spokesperson who talked to NBC News, as of July 1, surveillance under FoodNet has been reduced from eight to two foodborne pathogens, now only covering Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and Salmonella.

Before July, FoodNet covered six additional pathogens that are significant to food safety and public health: Campylobacter, Cyclospora, Listeria monocytogenes, Shigella, Vibrio, and Yersinia.

According to CDC’s latest estimates, which were informed in part by FoodNet data, Campylobacter alone caused 1.9 million cases of foodborne illness in the U.S. in 2019—beating out both Salmonella and STEC.

Additionally, although L. monocytogenes, another nixed pathogen, typically causes fewer cases (1,250 cases in 2019) than other pathogens, listeriosis can be quite deadly. For example, in 2024, a national listeriosis outbreak linked to Boar’s Head deli meats resulted in ten deaths out of 61 cases of illness.

The recent cuts to FoodNet may compromise public health officials’ ability to recognize when cases of illness related to a certain pathogen begin to rise, hindering foodborne illness outbreak response. Accurate analysis of trends over time may also be impacted.

FoodNet is a joint effort between CDC, the U.S. Food and Health Administration (FDA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and ten state health departments. Although state health departments are no longer required to surveil for the six pathogens cut from FoodNet, they can continue to conduct surveillance for those pathogens on their own, if they so choose.

For instance, the Maryland Health Department told NBC News it would continue reporting for all eight pathogens regardless of changes to FoodNet. On the other hand, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said it would need to scale back surveillance for some pathogens if funding is decreased in Fiscal Year 2026.

https://www.cdc.gov/foodnet/about/index.html

About FoodNet

At a glance

FoodNet is a collaboration between CDC, USDA, FDA, and 10 state health departments.

FoodNet tracks infections caused by eight pathogens in a surveillance area that includes 16% of the U.S. population.

Personnel at each FoodNet site routinely communicate with clinical laboratories and collect detailed information about infections.