The National Food Safety Database

Foodborne illness

Angela M. Fraser

A foodborne illness is illness transmitted to human beings through food. It can be caused by either an infectious agent (food-borne infection) or a poisonous substance (food intoxication). Over 80 percent of foodborne illness is caused by pathogenic strains of bacteria. Foodborne illness is nearly 100 percent preventable if food is handled safely from the time it is received until the time it is served.

  1. This document is part of "The Notebook of Food and Food Safety Information," produced by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service. It was originally produced in 1992 and was revised in 1997.

  2. Angela M. Fraser, PH.D, Food Safety Specialist and Carolyn J. Lackey, Ph.D., R.D., Department Extension Leader, Family and Consumer Sciences, Foods and Nutrition, Box 7605, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7605.