Abstract
The largest foodborne illness outbreak in a decade occurred in the summer of 2008, when 1,442 individuals were identified as having been sickened by Salmonella of the unusual serotype Saintpaul.1,2 As part of a larger national telephone survey on food recalls, researchers at the Rutgers Food Policy Institute assessed Americans’ awareness of and responses to the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak. This included an examination of their knowledge about which foods were believed to have caused the outbreak, their awareness of the status of the outbreak at the time of the interview, and the actions they may have taken to avoid becoming ill as a result of this outbreak. Results from this survey indicate that while communication about foodborne illness does receive significant attention from the American public, often the specifics of the outbreak and recommended actions are misunderstood or disregarded.