U.S. food safety systems under scrutiny amid multiple outbreaks

Recent foodborne illness outbreaks in the United States have prompted scrutiny of the nation’s food safety monitoring systems. Public health officials and consumer advocates are questioning whether reductions in federal funding and staffing levels at agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have compromised the ability to track and prevent threats.

Specific recent recalls and outbreaks include:

• Clover Hill Dairy: A voluntary recall of cheese products, including requesón and soft ricotta, has been linked to a Listeria outbreak. The CDC and FDA have traced illnesses spanning from March 2023 to June 2026, resulting in twelve confirmed infections and one death across several states, including New York.

• Everything Sprouts, LLC: The FDA and CDC are investigating a multistate E. coli and Salmonella outbreak linked to alfalfa sprouts, with 55 people sickened and four hospitalized.

• Kettle Cuisine LLC: Marketside Tomato Bisque Soup Kits sold at Walmart have been recalled following a presumptive positive test for Listeria.

• Lundberg White Jasmine Rice: Certain two-pound bags have been recalled due to the potential presence of unspecified foreign material.