Which organization is part of a collaboration that conducts surveillance for foodborne illness-causing organisms such as Campylobacter, Cyclospora, Listeria, Salmonella, and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli?

• A. PulseNet
• B. NARMS
• C. NNDSS
• D. FoodNet

Answer: (D)

FoodNet is the program that does this kind of surveillance through a coordinated collaboration. It’s an active, multi-agency effort led by CDC with state health departments and federal partners like USDA-FSIS and FDA, specifically designed to monitor the incidence of foodborne illness-causing organisms such as Campylobacter, Cyclospora, Listeria, Salmonella, and Shiga toxin–producing E. coli. By collecting laboratory-confirmed case data across multiple sites, FoodNet tracks trends, detects outbreaks, and informs prevention efforts. This distinguishes it from other options: PulseNet focuses on DNA fingerprinting to identify clusters of related cases, NARMS tracks antimicrobial resistance in enteric bacteria, and NNDSS collects data on notifiable diseases but isn’t the active surveillance program for these specific pathogens.