Tracking Illnesses Caused by Four Foodborne Pathogens Over Four Decades of the Healthy People Initiative.

The Healthy People (HP) Initiative, a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and various public and private organizations, aims to improve the health and well-being of all Americans. HP consists of national health objectives with 10-year targets to achieve by the end of the decade. Since HP2000, progress toward goals on four foodborne pathogens (Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli, and Salmonella) has been primarily tracked using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet). The data used to inform the HP food safety goals spans nearly four decades from 1987 (HP2000) to 2024 (the most recent HP2030 data point). Each decade, measuring foodborne pathogen objectives has become more rigorous and target-setting methods have evolved. HP2000 objectives aimed at a reduction in infections to no more than a set value and, most recently, HP2030 objectives were developed to align with key regulations or targeted a percent improvement in foodborne illness infections. Progress toward these targets has been monitored and categorized (getting worse, no detectable change, improving, or met target) for these pathogens. This article details the advancements made to more accurately establish targets, assess the data, and measure progress at the end or most recent data point of each decade. Each decade, measurement of objectives, baseline-setting methods, target-setting methods, and reporting progress methods have evolved. For this reason, caution must be taken when attempting to compare data across decades.