Foodborne Disease Outbreaks Traced to Poultry, United States, 1966–1974

Abstract

To determine the epidemiologic characteristics of foodborne disease outbreaks traced to poultry, we reviewed records of all 352 such outbreaks reported to the Center for Disease Control 1966–1974; 217 (62%) outbreaks were traced to turkey, 129 (37%) to chicken, 5 (1%) to both turkey and chicken, and 1 (0.3%) to cornish hen. Outbreaks from poultry accounted for 12% of all foodborne disease outbreaks reported from 1966 through 1974, but the number and percentage has been decreasing since 1969; these outbreaks involved 30,606 cases of gastrointestinal illness (20% of all cases of foodborne disease) and 14 deaths. Food-service establishments were responsible for mishandling the food in 79% of outbreaks, homes in 19%, and food-processing establishments in 2%. In 85% of the outbreaks, the food-handling error was storage of food at improper holding temperatures. In outbreaks reported 1972–1974 in which an etiologic agent was indentified, Salmonella spp. were responsible for 44%, Clostridium perfringens for 26%, and Staphylococcus aureus for 26%. The number of reported outbreaks from turkey increased dramatically during the Thanksgiving-Christmas holiday season. The downward trend in the number and percentage of poultry outbreaks since 1969 may reflect public education efforts.