The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has quietly scaled back a cornerstone program that tracks foodborne illnesses, sparking concern among food safety experts.
As of July 1, the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) now monitors only two pathogens — salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). Until recently, the system tracked six additional threats: campylobacter, cyclospora, listeria, shigella, vibrio, and Yersinia. Some of these pathogens can cause severe, even life-threatening infections, particularly among infants, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems.
FoodNet, launched in 1995, is a partnership among the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, and 10 state health departments. Covering about 54 million Americans, or 16% of the population, the program has been the only federal system actively searching for multiple foodborne diseases rather than relying solely on states to report cases.
CDC officials said the shift allows the network to prioritize “core activities” while preserving its infrastructure. In documents reviewed by NBC News, the agency attributed the change to stagnant funding that has failed to keep pace with costs. The CDC has requested $72 million for food safety in fiscal year 2026 — roughly the same level it has sought in recent years.
The six pathogens no longer required under FoodNet will still be tracked through other federal systems, such as the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System and the CDC’s Listeria Initiative. However, experts argue that passive systems are less effective at detecting trends and emerging outbreaks.
“Essentially, CDC is backing off on one of their best surveillance systems,” said Dr. J. Glenn Morris, director of the University of Florida’s Emerging Pathogens Institute and a key figure in establishing FoodNet. He warned that the move could weaken the nation’s ability to track foodborne disease trends and respond quickly to outbreaks.
Barbara Kowalcyk, director of the Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security at George Washington University, called the decision “very disappointing.” She noted that decades of work to strengthen food safety oversight could be undermined. Kowalcyk, whose son died in 2001 from complications of an E. coli infection, said stagnant federal food safety budgets and cuts to state funding have made it difficult to sustain surveillance efforts.
Morris also raised concerns that narrowing FoodNet’s focus could open the door to scaling back federal food safety regulations. “If you want to make foodborne disease go away, then don’t look for foodborne disease,” he said.
The White House, however, defended the administration’s commitment to food safety. “The health and safety of the American people is the Administration’s utmost priority,” said spokesman Kush Desai, adding that USDA, HHS, FDA, and CDC would “maintain the highest vigilance to safeguard our food supply.”
States are now weighing how to respond. Maryland said its reporting requirements for all eight pathogens will continue regardless of federal changes. Colorado, meanwhile, warned it may need to reduce active surveillance if funding falls in 2026. Other states, including Georgia and New Mexico, reported they had not yet received formal notification from the CDC.
Food safety advocates caution that the long-term effects of the cutback may depend on whether states can absorb the surveillance costs on their own. Without robust national data, they warn, early detection of outbreaks and accurate tracking of foodborne illness trends could be at risk.
