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Episode Transcription
This is Food Safety in a Minute from Washington State University Extension.
Did you know we have a public health surveillance system used to uncover multistate foodborne outbreaks? It’s called PulseNet and includes eighty-three (83) local, state, regional, and federal laboratories. Every state has at least one PulseNet laboratory.
Scientists at the laboratories study clusters of foodborne illness outbreaks. Using laboratory methods such as whole genome sequencing, they establish DNA fingerprints of bacteria found in people, food, and our environment. Currently, the database contains a million DNA fingerprints. The fingerprints are used to detect outbreaks leading to food recalls and changes in food production. PulseNet enhances food safety from farm to table.
To learn more, look for PulseNet on the internet.
This is Susie Craig from Food Safety in a Minute.