The German Reporting System for foodstuffs involved in food-borne outbreaks

A detailed understanding of the ethiologic agents and foodstuffs involved is necessary to prevent food-borne infections. In addition to an infectious disease reporting system gathering information on human cases and outbreaks caused by notifiable diseases at the Robert Koch Institute, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment operates a reporting system collecting detailed data on the food implicated in food-borne outbreaks. The system also collects information on the risk factors along the food chain. The data could be used for qualitative and quantitative risk assessment. Furthermore, it represents the basis for the Community report according to the Zoonoses Directive 2003/99/EC