E. coli: how dangerous is your food?

Food scientists are concerned about an increase in the number of outbreaks of E. coli contamination over the past couple of years. E. coli has the potential to cause severe illness and death in young children and the elderly. Finding the source of the contamination can be difficult when food like ground beef is processed from a variety of ingredients from around the country and around the world.

Guests

• Joellen Feirtag: Associate professor and extension food safety specialist at the University of Minnesota.
• Jeff Bender: Director, Center for Animal Health & Food Safety at the University of Minnesota.
• Mark Dopp: Senior vice president of regulatory affairs and general counsel at the American Meat Institute.

More from MPR

• Four Minnesota cases of E. coli illness linked to Sam's Club meat
  October 5, 2007
• Six E. coli cases in Minn. linked to recalled cookie dough
  June 19, 2009
• New for cows: A vaccine for E. coli
  March 12, 2009

Resources

• New York Times: E. Coli Path Shows Flaws in Beef Inspection
• About Joellen Feirtag
• About Jeff Bender
• American Meat Institute