Death of a family member to foodborne illness
is a profoundly tragic loss.
Losing a child is the most devastating crisis one can ever endure. It violates many core principals we humans hold dear: the natural biological progression that children outlive their parents, a belief in a better future for our offspring, faith and conviction in one’s spirituality, striving to find one’s purpose, and hope for a good and ordered existence.
Losing anyone to a tragedy of this kind can take you to a dismal and murky place.
How can one get through the darkest space imaginable? Having already experienced the trauma of trying to rescue your loved one from the ravages of foodborne disease, you now face the enormity of the utmost tragedy in an extremely depleted condition. It may be helpful, for you, to know that you are not alone.
Families experiencing the same outcome as yours often go through an extreme (albeit perfectly normal) range of responses. These emotions will confront and confound you in the days and years ahead. Powerful feelings ranging from utter shock, denial, and yearning to anger, powerlessness, and guilt which overlaps confusion and a profound absence of hope. The ebb and flow within each person surges differently and courses along individual timelines.
Your life is forever changed. There will never be “closure”, because that would mean abandoning to some degree the essence of that life which was lost. There can be, however, reconciliation with this excruciating deficit as you survive a moment, a day, a season.
Survival comes, in part, by cherishing and preserving the meaning of your dear one’s life. You will honor them by keeping their significance and nature remembered and relevant, allowing their impact to drive you towards a life of consequence.
Hopefully, support will come from all those who love you and any who also grieve your loved one.
Grief never ends, but it changes. It's a passage, not a place to stay.
Grief is not a sign of weakness, or a lack of faith.
It is the price of Love.
There can be reconciliation with this excruciating deficit as you
survive a moment
a day
a season⁕ Mary Heersink
Perhaps now is the time to take advantage of professional help such as grief counseling. Or, maybe one these excellent national organizations (listed below) will become a resource to you as you find your way forward.
Moving Forward Doesn’t Mean Moving On: In this TED Talk video, author and podcaster Nora McInerny shares her hard-earned wisdom about life and death.
Begin Here – Do No Harm: Notes from a letter … on where to start when someone you love experiences loss.
Grieving is a Family Affair: Some emotions of grief can be shared with others, while other intense feelings of loneliness or guilt, may never be put into words.
How to Choose a Therapist, Counselor, or Psychologist
HealGrief.org: Providing Community, Support & Connections
The Compassionate Friends: Find a Local Chapter
AMF (Actively Moving Forward) app: An online social support network for the bereaved and those supporting them.
COVE app: Expressing your emotions can be hard. It can be easier if you make music.
We don't move on from grief.
We move forward with it.⁕ Nora McInerny
We were filled with all sorts of emotions ranging from excitement to sadness.
Ashley was the first to know about the new baby, even before her father or brothers. We knew she would be so happy.
She loved babies.
Daniel wanted to make sure we didn’t name the baby Ashley or Rose and that we weren’t “replacing” Ashley. We didn’t want it to seem that we were either.
We were wondering how Ashley would feel about this. Then a song came on which had these lyrics “I need a sign to let me know you’re there” and “I need to know that things are going to look up.” Then came the chorus and the name of the song, “Calling all Angels.”
There was our sign.
We knew things were going to be okay, but we can’t help but get sad when we think that the baby will never know Ashley or Ashley will never know the baby. We know in our hearts that this is the way for our family to move forward. It is a way to heal and to give our family back some happiness.
It is a chance for our kids to realize that not everything in a hospital, or every doctor, is bad. That good things, like a new birth, can happen at a hospital too.⁕ Andrea, mom to a daughter lost to E. coli
Anyone who has lost a close relative or friend knows that the grieving process can be lonely. Even though others may also have loved the one who is gone, each is mourning the loss of an individual relationship; and each of those relationships is unique. It may feel as though there is no one who fully identifies with our feelings at a time when we desperately wish someone could fill the emotional void left by the loss.
from
The Neuroscience of Grieving
Over the past 27 years, I have talked to far too many parents grieving the loss of a child due to foodborne pathogens, such as E.coli or Salmonella. In most cases, these children were under five years of age. These parents’ shock and anger are often accompanied by self-doubt.
I recall one mother who shared her conflicting emotions over the fact that she should be happy that her child survived – but she lives with the guilt that her child will never have anything resembling a normal childhood or life. I also recall one father who cried with me over the phone, unable to let go of his guilt over not having been able to protect his four-year-old daughter from becoming ill and dying. He also shared his fear that he could not be a good father for their surviving two-year-old child.
Many parents on these calls look at the future and imagine themselves demanding someone being held accountable, being fired, and being sentenced to jail time. Some want to point blame and demand change. Some talk of PTSD and of not being able to discuss their feelings or their needs with family, friends, or peers at work.
I don’t look forward to these conversations, but someone needs to be there as a resource for parents in this situation. My goal is to listen and to offer my insight – based on my experience.
In 1993, an E. coli outbreak at Jack in the Box fast-food restaurants dominated the news in the Pacific Northwest. Like most parents at that time, I had never heard of E. coli. My family, including our 9-year-old and 16-month-old sons lived about 90 miles north of Seattle. Our first thoughts were that we would be safe if avoided eating in Seattle. As the news revealed more information, my precautions grew to include my family avoiding hamburgers. Finally, we learned that we should avoid eating hamburgers from a specific restaurant. If I were afraid for any one of us, it was for my 9-year-old, thinking that he was vulnerable. My youngest son, Riley, was the child I thought we would not have to worry about because at his very young age he had never even eaten a hamburger and would not any time soon. That did not matter, however, as he became ill with E. coli not from directly eating food contaminated with a foodborne pathogen, but because of person-to-person contamination—from another child in his day care who was sick with E. coli.
While sitting by my son’s bedside for weeks, I came to accept that this was going to be a long, difficult recovery from a horrible illness. I clipped newspaper articles about the outbreak, photos about his ordeal, and even findings from the investigators. Friends and family sent clippings along with “get well” cards. I planned to create an album to use when he was old enough to explain how brave he was and how he overcame incredible medical challenges. I still have many of those old newspaper clippings. And, aside from family photos and video of a young boy being loved and learning how to walk, I have four immortal images burned into my memory from 1993.
The first image is a look in my son’s eyes as he sat on my lap while I held him in his hospital bed the day he was first admitted. At only 16 months of age, he could not understand how his IV bag, hanging at the bedside, was not a bottle that he could hold and drink. Riley wanted to go home. He wanted comfort from his bottle, but he could not have one. With only a few words at his disposal, he kept reaching for the hanging bag of IV fluids and saying “Ba Ba” for bottle.
The second image comes from something I saw on the TV news, as I had been prevented from getting close enough to be there in person. I saw the immediately recognizable characteristics of my son’s face, peeking out from under the blankets and the sides of a basket that was being loaded into a helicopter, as he was about to be airlifted to Seattle Children’s Hospital almost 90 miles away.
The third image is from that hospital’s pediatric intensive care unit, where I saw barely visible portions of my son’s face and body surrounded by medical equipment while in a medically induced coma for weeks. Barely a day after Riley arrived at Children’s Hospital, doctors performed exploratory surgery and removed a large portion of his colon. When the staff brought Riley back to his hospital room, the doctors could not look us in the eyes as they related how bad things were and that they had placed him in a medically induced coma. I painfully remember Riley’s eyes, coated with an ointment, remained closed. His little arms and legs arranged to serve as a bridge between his small body and the web of wires and towering machines surrounding his bed. The little blonde boy, who had hardly been able to walk and talk just a week earlier, now remained medically paralyzed and breathing on a respirator. Over the next few weeks, Riley’s little body, dwarfed by wires, tubes, and devices, developed renal failure, heart problems, and respiratory distress.
The final image comes from when I watched two men carrying my young son in a white coffin on a cold February morning. That coffin was far smaller than a coffin should ever be.
Only 23 days after he became infected with E.coli and later developed HUS – requiring dialysis, exploratory surgery removing a large part of his intestines, and being placed in a medically induced coma – Riley died from a massive brain hemorrhage and multiple organ failure.
Along with the news of Riley’s death, investigators confirmed that he had not eaten any of the contaminated product but became ill through person-to-person transmission from another child who had eaten the contaminated meat.
The landmark 1993 “Jack in the Box” E. coli O157:H7 outbreak resulted in the deaths of four children, including:
The day after Riley’s death, President Clinton called me from a phone aboard Air Force One. The President asked what his administration could do to help parents in this situation. I suggested that perhaps the best course of action would be to let parents like myself help the government make food safer, as I felt compelled to speak up to help prevent others from living with a chair forever empty at the family table.
In the years that followed, I consulted with the USDA as an advocate for the “Food Safe Handling Labels” federal mandate. This label, in use now for some 20 years, called for special handling instruction labels to be placed on all raw meat products (referred to as the most significant change in food safety in 100 years). At the request of the USDA, I also worked as a consultant for the USDA’s Pathogen Reduction Program.
My food safety speaking, writing, advocacy, and other experiences over the previous five years slowly made their way into what I taught over the next 15 years in high school history, math, and science classrooms.
In 2004, after earning national certification from the FDA as a Food Science Educator, the Secretary of Agriculture appointed me to two terms as a USDA regulatory policy advisor on the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (2004–2007). In this role, as a food safety education expert, I presented before legislators, industry, and national organizations. I also consulted with print/broadcast media. And my writing on food safety history was featured in numerous journals and trade publications.
This work enhanced my teaching in the school but would eventually lead me to explore leaving the classroom. I returned to feelings I had in 1993 when I looked at those newspaper clippings, cards, and letters. Was this my purpose? Would my role forevermore be teaching the history of E.coli outbreaks over and over again while not doing something about the fact that foodborne pathogen recalls, outbreaks, illnesses, and deaths are a regular feature in the nightly news?
So, after 15 years of classroom teaching, I left my job and moved to the East Coast to pursue my desire to work in some capacity to prevent others from suffering from foodborne illness.
I served as the senior policy coordinator for STOP Foodborne Illness (2014-2016) where I represented the organization before a variety of federal, state, industry, and consumer stakeholders. Meanwhile, I conducted and defended my doctoral research on states’ ability to implement federal food policies, such as FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) of 2011 (Pub.L. 111-353), and the USDA’s efforts to label mechanically tenderized beef.
Today, I am a professor of food policy, lead faculty of a regulatory affairs of a graduate program in food, and an assistant dean at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. I sit on multiple advisory panels, speak across the country and abroad, write a column in Quality Assurance and Food Safety Magazine, and have authored two books – FOOD SAFETY: Past, Present, and Predictions (Detwiler, 2020a); and Building the Future of Food Safety Technology: Blockchain and Beyond (Detwiler, 2020b).
One of the first things I learned after my son died was that the world first took significant notice of the unseen dangers on their dinner plates with the publishing of Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel The Jungle. Even though Sinclair’s intended message was support for socialism, readers paid a great deal of attention to the chapters in which he described in detail the conditions under which meat was prepared. The impact of Sinclair’s novel on readers can be seen in an excerpt from The London Times Literary Supplement review of the book in 1906, where the reviewer connected Sinclair’s material to its real-world context and validated the truth exposed through the novel’s content. The review reinforced The Jungle as a factual warning and accurately predicted the concerns Americans would continue to face today.
“Unhappily we have good reason for believing it to be all fact, not fiction.…it is with nothing less than horror that we learn it to be true. The things described by Mr. Sinclair happened yesterday, are happening today, and will happen tomorrow and the next day, until some Hercules comes to cleanse the filthy stable” (The London Times, 1906)
While these words still ring true today, they stung me a little harder in 1993. The need to improve food safety took a top priority that year, with newly inaugurated President Bill Clinton not only talking about this issue on live national TV while it was unfolding as he took office (C-SPAN, 1993), but also pressuring the USDA to add inspectors and improve policies. Even with these changes – the most significant since 1906 (stemming from the Roosevelt administrations reaction Sinclair’s novel The Jungle) – failures in food safety have persisted.
Since 1993, we have seen the seemingly uninterrupted cycle of crisis-and-reform through headline after headline of multistate outbreaks and huge recalls involving major labels and national retail or restaurant chains. The early food safety focus on meat and poultry soon expanded to include recalls and outbreaks tied to cantaloupe, leafy greens, sprouts, caramel apples, ice cream, peanut butter, and other produce. Ready-to-eat and commercially packaged goods such as cereals and salads also found their way onto lists of contaminated products.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that each year, 48 million Americans become ill from foodborne pathogens, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die (CDC, 2018). Since Riley’s death in the landmark 1993 E. coli outbreak, the math shows that over 80,000 American consumers have died from foodborne illnesses, a large portion of which could have been prevented (Mead et al., 1999). However, I often hear federal food regulators and industry executives make statements that the American food supply is “the safest in the world.” Many experts have criticized these misleading statements as they portray a lesser sense of risk to policymakers and to consumers (Krebs, 2004). The frequency and quantity of meat recalls, along with the number of outbreaks, illnesses, and deaths tied to foodborne pathogens indicate that problems still exist somewhere between the farm and the table.
Many times, even the efforts of those companies and leaders who did everything they could to protect their consumers would be thwarted by improper handling, inadequate cooking, or some other action down the line. We have witnessed news coverage and even documentaries that have highlighted investigations and lawsuits, as well as executives discuss their companies’ stock values fall and, often, rise again.
I often hear the voices of other victims and their families who have also shared the true burden of disease with industry, policymakers, and consumer advocates who also served on committees and boards involved in improving food safety for others. The FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) of 2011 (Pub.L. 111-353) stands as an example of one of the most significant pieces of food safety legislation made law only because of the hard work of young survivors, parents, experts, victims’ lawyers, and advocacy groups such as STOP Foodborne Illness. Unfortunately, these advances have not prevented some of the largest outbreaks in recent history, such as several multi-state outbreaks tied to a major chain of Mexican grill restaurants, a deadly outbreak tied to major ice cream maker, and the ones tied to Romaine lettuce in 2018 and 2019.
Today, the same companies that tried to avoid me 25 years ago now regularly invite me to speak with them before large audiences and even before their own employees at corporate training events. But the message I send today is no longer solely about the past. My audiences include regulators, inspectors, corporate executives, quality assurance leaders, doctors, lawyers, food industry employees, journalists, fellow academics, students, and consumer groups. I am proud to have testified before Congress, served two appointed terms as an advisor to the USDA, worked with FDA leaders, sat on stakeholder committees, and provided policy leadership for advocacy groups.
Focusing on the past, I became filled with rage over and over when I realized that I took for granted making the world a better place for my son and being able to have the rest of my life to make up the lost time. The past was always something I have held on to, whereas I was afraid to reach to the future. However, by shifting my focus to the future, I have found peace and function, dedication and action.
My central message is that we cannot wait for some “Hercules” to come and fix every food safety failure, because “Hercules” does not really exist. Instead, working collaboratively and with the use of new technologies, we can muster the Herculean Effort – the enormous amount of work, strength, and courage – that is needed to prevent failures in food safety and to prevent consumers from becoming harmed and families from losing loved ones to foodborne pathogens.
Still, some of the hardest conversations I have had have been with other parents who later went through what my family experienced long ago.
Sometimes, I talk with parents of children who were hospitalized, but, fortunately, did not die. Though their young children lived through dialysis and surgeries and rehabilitation – many will live with life-long medical conditions. These families also live with fears.
About a decade after my son died, I met the family of a young boy who, at four years old, is one of those fortunate ones who lived after being hospitalized for months from E.coli. While this meeting left me with a sense of optimism, a return visit a few years later left me with something far more important.
While attending a conference in their city, I was able to meet up for coffee with the mother of that child who was now about four years older. She talked about his progress but was sad to talk about how he has had a difficult time accepting that he cannot use his left arm, as a result of the stroke he had while sick. She talked about how he knows that he cannot play like the other boys in his school.
But then she pulled out a crayon-colored image for me to see. She revealed how her son said how he wished someone at the food company could have done something to prevent him from becoming sick…and that that person would have been his hero. He did not draw someone in a fancy business suit or in a food industry smock: no hair net…no gloves. Instead, he drew a superhero – flying and wearing red tights and a cape.
Since that visit, I have shown an image of what he drew to audiences across the country and abroad.
You see, it is one thing to want to make our food supply system as safe as can be. It is another to inspire others to do the same.
Using that crayon drawing of a superhero inflight, I draw attention to the fact that each and every person in my audience plays a role in this Herculean Effort. I stress that they are perceived as real superheroes – even in this age of DC and Marvel movies – in the eyes of those who depend on them to make their food safe. Their work – their actions – are critical when it comes to the future for the lives of so many. There will never be an end to pathogens in our food, but we can change the culture around the future of food safety.
So – what advice do I give grieving parents who ask me how they can start looking towards the future?
First – focusing energy solely on the failures in the past is neither healthy nor sustainable.
And second – supporting and inspiring those who do act to prevent future failures can bring about immeasurable rewards. Our world needs your voices and your passion to help inspire the changes we all need. This is exactly the kind of work, strength, and courage behind any “Herculean Effort.” Mine has been to create a future where fewer families live with a chair forever empty at the dinner table.
I lost my son, yes. But my son did not lose his father.
By focusing on inspiring the future generations of food safety heroes, I find incredible fulfilment, but, more importantly, I also find peace in those opportunities to still be a father to my son.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, November 5). “Estimates of Foodborne Illness in the United States: Burden of Foodborne Illnesses.” Available at https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/2011-foodborne-estimates.html
C-SPAN. (1993, February 10). Video Clip of “President Clinton Televised Town Meeting.” Available from: https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4506516/clinton-town-meeting
Detwiler, D. (2020a). Food Safety: Past, Present, and Predictions. (1st Ed.). Elsevier Academic Press., Cambridge, MA. ISBN: 9780128182192. Available at https://www.elsevier.com/books/food-safety/detwiler/978-0-12-818219-2
Detwiler, D. (2020b). Building the Future of Food Safety Technology: Blockchain and Beyond. (1st Ed.). Elsevier Academic Press, Cambridge, MA. ISBN: 9780128189566. Available at https://www.elsevier.com/books/building-the-future-of-food-safety-technology/detwiler/978-0-12-818956-6
Kelley, T. (1996). “Chronology of E. coli outbreak.” The Seattle Times. Available from: http:// community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19960707&slug=233804
King, W. (1993). E. coli victim leaves legacy of awareness. The Seattle Times. Available from: http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19930225&slug=1687443
Krebs, A. (2004). “Debunking the myth that the U.S. ‘Has the Safest Food in the World.’” The Agribusiness Examiner. Available from: http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/foodmyth040504.cfm
The London Times. (1906). “Literary Supplement: The Jungle.” Microfilm collection, Western Washington University.
The Los Angeles Times. (1993). “Child dies from bacteria; parents had voiced an appeal to Clinton.” Available from: https://www.articles.latimes.com/1993-02-21/news/mn-825_1_town-meeting
Mead, P., Slutsker, L., Dietz,V., McCaig, L., Bresee, J., Shapiro, C., et al. (1999). “Food-related illness and death in the United States.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available from: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/5/5/99-0502
Penhale, E. (1993, June 2). “A cry for better meat safety.” The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Page A1.
Sylvester, R. (1995). “Children risk death from burger bug.” The Sunday Telegraph (London), p. 9.
The New York Times. (1993a, February 6). “Jack in the box’s worst nightmare.” Available from: https://www.nytimes.com/1993/02/06/business/company-news-jack-in- the-box-s-worst-nightmare.html
The New York Times. (1993b, February 22). “17-month-old is 3rd child to die of illness linked to tainted meat”. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/1993/02/22/ us/17-month-old-is-3d-child-to-die-of-illness-linked-to-tainted-meat.html
The Orlando Sentinel. (1993, February 28). “Toddler’s Death Shakes the Nation.” Available from: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1993-02-28/news/9302270333_1_detwiler-coli-infection-riley
Sinclair, U. (1906). The Jungle. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. Available from: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/140/140-h/140-h.htm
KEEP YOU AND YOUR FAMILY SAFE
Our mission:
As the voice of people affected by foodborne illness, we collaborate with partners in academia, the food industry, and government to prevent foodborne illness. We advocate for effective food safety policy and facilitate culture change to increase food safety.
Stop Foodborne Illness is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the extent the law allows.
Wyoming Department of Public Health
401 Hathaway Building
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Call 1-866-571-0944 (toll free) or (307) 777-7656
Wyoming Department of Health: Epidemiology Unit
Infectious Disease Epidemiology + Food Safety
Nevada HHS/ Division of Public and Behavioral Health
Environmental Health
4126 Technology Way 4150 Technology Way
Carson City, NV 89706 Carson City, NV 89706
http://dpbh.nv.gov/Reg/Food/Food_Establishments_Home/
Southern Nevada Health District Food Safety
https://www.southernnevadahealthdistrict.org/Health-Topics/food-safety/
Report a Foodborne Illness
https://www.southernnevadahealthdistrict.org/Health-Topics/foodborne-illness/
702-759-1300
South Dakota Department of Health
Office of Health Protection
600 E Capitol Avenue
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-4945
doh.sd.gov/food/
South Dakota Department of Agriculture
523 E Capitol Avenue
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-5425
Preventing Foodborne Illness
https://doh.sd.gov/food/prevention.aspx
Arkansas Department of Health
Office of Environmental Health
4815 West Markham Street, Slot 46
Little Rock, AR 72205
501-661-2171
www.healthy.arkansas.gov
Public Health Safety | Foodborne Disease
https://www.healthy.arkansas.gov/programs-services/topics/foodborne-disease
Utah Department of Health/Report a Foodborne Illness
Cannon Health Building
288 North 1460 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84116
888-222-2542
Utah Association of Local Health Departments
Salt Lake County Health Department
Food Protection
Vermont Department of Health
Public Health Laboratory
108 Cherry Street, PO Box 70
Burlington, VT 05402
800-439-8550
Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets
Food Safety and Consumer Protection
116 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05620
802-828-2430
Virginia Department of Health
Food Safety
109 Governor Street
Richmond, VA 23219
804-864-7454
350 Capitol Street, Room 702
Charleston, WV 25301
304-558-2971
1 West Wilson Street
Madison, WI 53703
608-266-1865
DC Department of Health Food Safety https://dchealth.dc.gov/service/division-food
DC Department of Health Foodborne Disease Surveillance https://dchealth.dc.gov/service/foodborne-illness-surveillance
National Resources
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
FDA Center for Food Safety
888-SAFEFOOD (1-888-723-3366)
www.fda.gov
US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline: 1-888-674-6854
USDA- Food Safety and Inspection Services (FSIS)
www.fsis.usda.gov
US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
www.foodsafety.gov
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
800-232-4636
www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/
Antibiotic Resistance Action Center
The Center for Food Safety
202-547-9359
International Food Information Council Foundation
202-296-6540
Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists
www.cste.org
770-458-3811
_________________________________________
Office on Women’s Health
womenshealth.gov/index.html
US National Library of Medicine
www.nlm.nih.gov/
Medline Plus
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/
National Institutes of Health
www.nih.gov/
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Food and Water Safety for Travelers
https://www.iamat.org/food-and-water-safety
Puerto Rico Done
https://www.fns.usda.gov/contact/puerto-rico-department-health
Guam Dept of Health
Guam Department of Agriculture
US Virgin Islands
Connecticut Department of Public Health
Food Protection Program
410 Capitol Avenue
Hartford, CT 06134
860-509-7297
Hartford Health Department
131 Coventry Street
Hartford, CT 06112
860-757-4726 or 860-757-4729
New Haven Health Department
54 Meadow Street
New Haven, CT 06519
203-946-6999
Texas Department of State Health Services
Food Establishments Group
PO Box 149347
Austin, TX 78714
512- 834-6753
www.dshs.state.tx.us/foodestablishments/
Texas Department of Agriculture
Food and Nutrition
1700 N Congress, 11th Floor
Austin, TX 78701
512-463-7476
www.squaremeals.org/
http://www.squaremeals.org/FandNResources/FarmtoSchool/ToolsforSchools/FoodSafety.aspx
Texas Health Departments (by District)
www.dshs.state.tx.us/regions/lhds.shtm
www.dshs.state.tx.us/regions/nonlhd.shtm
Infectious Disease Control Unit
1100 West 49th Street, Suite T801
Austin, TX 78714
512-776-7676
www.dshs.state.tx.us/idcu/health/foodborne_illness/
Austin Food Establishment Inspections
https://data.austintexas.gov/dataset/Restaurant-Inspection-Scores/ecmv-9xxi
Dallas Food Establishment Inspections
http://www2.dallascityhall.com/FoodInspection/SearchScores.cfm
Fort Worth Food Establishment Inspections
www.fortworthgov.org/applications/Health/
Houston Food Establishment Inspections
http://houston.tx.gegov.com/media/search.cfm
San Antonio Food Establishment Inspections
www.sanantonio.gov/health/Food-Establishment-Inspection.html
Tennessee Department of Health
425 5th Avenue North
Cordell Hull Building, 3rd Floor
Nashville, TN 37243
615-741-3111
http://tn.gov/health
Division of Foodborne Illness
615-741-7247
Foodborne Illness Complaint Hotline
800-293-8228 (toll free)
Tennessee Restaurant Inspections
http://tn.gov/health/topic/eh-inspections
Health Departments in Tennessee by County
http://tn.gov/health/topic/localdepartments
Shelby County Health Department
814 Jefferson Avenue
Memphis, TN 38105
901-222-9243
www.shelbycountytn.gov/index.aspx?nid=1094
Metro Public Health Department of Nashville & Davidson County
311 23rd Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37203
615-340-5616
www.nashville.gov/Health-Department/Environmental-Health/Food-Protection-Services.aspx
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control
Food Protection
2600 Bull Street
Columbia, SC 29201
803-898-3432
http://www.scdhec.gov/FoodSafety/
South Carolina Department of Agriculture
Food Safety and Compliance
State Capitol /Wade Hampton Building, 5th Floor
Columbia, SC 29211
803-734-2210
http://agriculture.sc.gov/divisions/consumer-protection/foodfeed-safety-compliance/
South Carolina Food Establishment Inspections
www.scdhec.gov/environment/envhealth/food/htm/inspection-rating/
Rhode Island Department of Health
Food Protection
3 Capitol Hill
Providence, RI 02908
401-222-5960
401-272-5952 (emergency after hours)
http://www.health.ri.gov/programs/foodprotection/
Rhode Island Department of Environment
Agriculture Division
235 Promenade Street
Providence, RI 02908
401-222-2781
http://www.dem.ri.gov/programs/bnatres/agricult/index.php
Rhode Island Food Establishment Inspections
http://www.health.ri.gov/food/
Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture
Bureau of Food Safety & Laboratory Services
2301 North Cameron Street
Harrisburg, PA 17110
866-366-3723
www.agriculture.state.pa.us
Pennsylvania Department of Health
625 Forster Street, 8th Floor West
Harrisburg, PA 17120
877-PA-HEALTH
www.portal.health.state.pa.us
Pennsylvania Food Establishment Inspections
https://www.pafoodsafety.state.pa.us/web/inspection/publicinspectionsearch.aspx
Oregon Health Authority
Healthy Environments/Foodborne Illness
800 NE Oregon Street, Suite 640
Portland, OR 97232
971-673-0451
public.health.oregon.gov/HealthyEnvironments/FoodSafety/Pages/index.aspx
erica.vaness@state.or.us
Oregon Department of Agriculture
Food Safety Program
635 Capitol Street NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-4720
www.oregon.gov/ODA/fsd/Pages/index.aspx
Oregon Health Departments (by County)
public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/LocalHealthDepartmentResources/Pages/lhd.aspx
Multnomah County (Portland) Food Establishment Inspections
www3.multco.us/MCHealthInspect/ListSearch.aspx
Oklahoma Department of Health
Food Safety and Foodborne Diseases
1000 NE 10th Street, Room 605
Oklahoma City, OK 73117
405-271-4060
800-522-0203 (toll free)
www.ok.gov/health/Disease,_Prevention,_Preparedness/Acute_Disease_Service/Disease_Information/Food_Safety_and_Foodborne_Diseases/
Oklahoma Department of Agriculture Food and Forestry
2800 N Lincoln Boulevard
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-521-3864
www.oda.state.ok.us/food/
Oklahoma Food Establishment Inspections
www.phin.state.ok.us/Inspections/
Ohio Department of Health
Food Safety Program
246 N High Street
Columbus, OH 43215
614-466-1390
www.odh.ohio.gov/odhprograms/eh/foods/food2.aspx
Find Your Local Health Department (Ohio)
odhgateway.odh.ohio.gov/lhdinformationsystem/Directory/GetMyLHD
Ohio Department of Agriculture
Food Safety Division
8995 E Main Street
Reynoldsburg, OH 43068
614-728-6250
www.agri.ohio.gov/foodsafety
www.agri.ohio.gov/divs/meat/meat.aspx
Columbus Public Health
Food Protection Program
240 Parsons Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43215
614-645-8191
publichealth.columbus.gov/food-protection.aspx
Columbus Food Establishment Inspections
www.decadeonline.com/main.phtml?agency=COL
Franklin County Food Establishment Inspections
www.myfcph.org/foodinspections.php
Cleveland Food Establishment Inspections
www.clevelandhealth.org/network/environment/review_inspection_report.php
Cincinnati Food Establishment Inspections
www.cincinnati-oh.gov/noncms/health/inspection/
Ohio Inspections by County
www.ohioinspections.org/category.php
North Dakota Department of Health
600 E Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505
701-328-2372
www.ndhealth.gov/disease/GI/default.aspx
North Dakota Division of Food and Lodging
www.ndhealth.gov/foodlodging
North Dakota Department of Agriculture
Meat Inspection
www.nd.gov/ndda/program/meat-inspection
North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
NC Food Safety
4000 Reedy Creek Road
Raleigh, NC 27607
919-733-7366
http://www.ncfoodsafety.com/
North Carolina Department of Health
Food Protection Program
5605 Six Forks Road
Raleigh, NC 27609
919-707-5854
ehs.ncpublichealth.com/faf/food/index.htm
Report a Foodborne Illness
NCDPH Epidemiology
225 N McDowell Street
Raleigh, North Carolina 27603
919-733-3419 (24 hr access)
epi.publichealth.nc.gov/cd/report.html#who
North Carolina Health Department Directors (by County)
http://www.ncalhd.org/directors
Restaurant Inspections
www.wral.com/5onyourside/restaurants/page/1001540/
New York Department of Agriculture & Markets
Food Safety & Inspection
10B Airline Drive
Albany, NY 12235
518-457-4492
www.agriculture.ny.gov/FS/FSHome.html
New York Department of Health
Empire State Plaza
Albany, NY 12237
800-458-1158 (toll free)
518-473-4436
www.health.ny.gov/environmental/indoors/food_safety/index.htm
New York Health Departments (by Region, District and County)
www.health.ny.gov/environmental/water/drinking/doh_pub_contacts_map.htm
New York City Restaurant Inspection
www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/services/restaurant-inspection.shtml
New Mexico Environment Department
Food Program
PO Box 5469
Santa Fe, NM 87502
505-476-9102
www.nmenv.state.nm.us/fod/Food_Program
New Mexico Department of Health
1190 South Saint Francis Drive
Santa Fe, NM 87502
505-827-2613
www.health.state.nm.us
New Mexico Public Health Offices Map (by County)
http://nmhealth.org/location/public/
Albuquerque Food Inspection and Safety
www.cabq.gov/envhealth/inspections
New Jersey Department of Health
Food and Drug Safety Program
PO Box 360
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-826-4935
www.nj.gov/health/foodanddrugsafety/consumer.shtml
New Jersey Department of Agriculture
PO Box 330
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-588-7606
www.state.nj.us/agriculture/news/hottopics/topics070319.html
New Jersey Departments of Health (by County or Municipality)
www.nj.gov/health/lh/directory/lhdselectcounty.shtml
Rutgers University/NJ Agricultural Experiment Station
88 Lipman Drive
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
njaes.rutgers.edu/health/
New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services
Public Health Services/Food Protection
129 Pleasant Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-4589
www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/fp
Foodborne Illness Surveillance
29 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-5300 (24 hr)
800-852-3345, x5300 (toll free 24 hr)
www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/cdcs/surveillance/food.htm
Nebraska Department of Health & Human Services
Epidemiology/Foodborne Illness
301 Centennial Mall South
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-2937
dhhs.ne.gov/publichealth/EPI/Pages/Foodborne.aspx
Nebraska Department of Agriculture
Food Safety and Consumer Protection
301 Centennial Mall South
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-3422
ttp://www.nda.nebraska.gov/fscp/index.html
Nebraska Health Departments (by County and Rural District)
dhhs.ne.gov/publichealth/Pages/puh_oph_lhd.aspx#Websites
Omaha-Douglas County Health Department
Disease Control/Foodborne Illness
1111 South 41st Street at Pacific
Omaha, NE 68105
402-444-7214
402-444-7000 (after hours)
www.douglascountyhealth.com/disease-a-immunization/food-borne-illness
Restaurant Inspections
www.douglascountyhealth.com/food-a-drink/food-facility-ratings?rname=all&submit=Search
Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department
3140 N Street
Lincoln, NE 68510
402-441-6280
www.lincoln.ne.gov/city/health/environ/consumer/food/foodsafety.htm
Food Establishment Inspections
logisrv01.lincoln.ne.gov/health/rdPage.aspx?rdReport=EPH.Default
Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services
Food & Consumer Safety
1400 Broadway
Helena, MT 59604
406-444-4542
www.dphhs.mt.gov/publichealth/fcs/index.shtml
Montana Health Departments (by County or Tribal Agency)
www.dphhs.mt.gov/publichealth/phep/countytribalhealthdepts.shtml
Montana Food Star Award Program
http://web.hhs.mt.gov/publichealth/fcs/foodstar.shtml
Montana DPHHS Food and Consumer Safety
http://dphhs.mt.gov/publichealth/FCSS
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
PO Box 570
Jefferson City, MO 65102
866-628-9891 (toll free)
www.health.mo.gov/safety/foodsafety
Missouri Department of Agriculture
Food Safety
1616 Missouri Boulevard
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-4211
mda.mo.gov/connect/foodsafety.php
Kansas City Department of Healt
Food Protection Program
2400 Troost Ave, Suite 3000
Kansas City, MO 64108
816-513-6315
http://kcmo.gov/health/environmental-health-services/environmental-public-health-program/
Kansas City Food Establishment Inspections
www.inspectionsonline.us/foodsafety/mousakansascity/search.htm
St. Louis County Department of Health
Safe Food Center
www.stlouisco.com/HealthandWellness/FoodandRestaurants
St. Louis Restaurant Inspections
www.stlouisco.com/HealthandWellness/FoodandRestaurants/RestaurantInspections
Mississippi Department of Health
Food Safety, Restaurant Inspections
570 East Woodrow Wilson Drive
Jackson, MS 39216
866-458-4948
msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/43,0,377.html
Reporting a Foodborne Illness
800-556-0003
601-576-7400 (after hours/holidays)
Mississippi Public Health Laboratory
570 East Woodrow Wilson
Jackson, MS 39216
601- 576-7582
601-576-7725 (Office of Epidemiology)
msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/14,0,73.html
Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce
Consumer Protection
PO Box 1609
Jackson, MS 39215
601-359-1148
https://www.mdac.ms.gov/bureaus-departments/regulatory-services/consumer-protection/
Minnesota Department of Public Health
Food Safety
PO Box 64975
St Paul, MN 55164
651-201-5000
888-345-0823 (toll free from greater MN)
www.health.state.mn.us/foodsafety
Reporting a Suspected Foodborne Illness
877-366-3455
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/idepc/dtopics/foodborne/reporting.html
Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Food Safety
625 Robert Street North
St Paul, Minnesota 55155
651-201-6000
800-967-2474
www.mda.state.mn.us/food/safety
Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Prevention and Control (IDECP)
625 N Robert Street
PO Box 64975
St Paul, MN 55164
77-676-5414 (toll free from greater MN)
877-FOOD-ILL (877-366-3) Foodborne Illness Hotline
Minneapolis Department of Health
Food Safety Program
Public Service Center
250 S 4th Street, Room 510
Minneapolis, MN 55415
612-673-2301
http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/health/inspections/foodsafety
Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development
Food Safety
PO Box 30017
Lansing, MI 48909
800-292-3939
www.michigan.gov/mdard/0,4610,7-125-50772—,00.html
www.michigan.gov/mdard/0,4610,7-125-1572_2875_31948-8257–,00.html
Michigan Department of Community Health
Bureau of Disease Control, Prevention, Epidemiology
Capitol View Building
201 Townsend Street
Lansing, MI 48913
517-373-3740
517-335-9030 (emergency after hours)
www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,4612,7-132-2945_5104—,00.html
Michigan Food Inspections
secure1.state.mi.us/misafe/Default.aspx
Kent County (Grand Rapids) Health Department
700 Fuller Avenue NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
616- 632-6900
www.accesskent.com/Health/FoodServices/default.htm
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Food Protection Program
305 South Street
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617-983-6700
617-522-3700 (emergency/after hours)
www.mass.gov/dph/fpp
Massachusetts Health Departments (by County)
www.healthguideusa.org/massachusetts_local_health_departments.htm
Massachusetts Partnership for Food Safety Education
www.mafoodsafetyeducation.info
City of Boston Department of Health
Inspectional Services Department/Health Division
1010 Massachusetts Avenue, 4th floor
Boston, MA 02118
617-635-5300
www.cityofboston.gov/isd/health
Worcester Department of Public Health\
25 Meade Street
Worcester, MA 01610
508-799-8531
www.worcesterma.gov/ocm/public-health
Maryland Department of Health
Office of Food Protection; Center for Retail Food, Plan and Process Reviews
6 Saint Paul Street, Suite 1301
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-767-8400
phpa.dhmh.maryland.gov/OEHFP/OFPCHS/SitePages/Home.aspx
Foodborne Illness/Emerging Infections Program
phpa.dhmh.maryland.gov/OIDEOR/EIP/SitePages/Home.aspx
Baltimore City Health Department\
1001 E Fayette Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-396-4398
baltimorehealth.org/foodcontrol.html
http://health.baltimorecity.gov/environmental-health/food-facilities
Montgomery County (Germantown, Silver Spring) Department of Health
Disease Control and Epidemiology
Dennis Avenue Health Center
2000 Dennis Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20902
240-777-1755
www.montgomerycountymd.gov/HHS-Program/Program.aspx?id=PHS/PHSDControl-p270.html
Howard County (Columbia) Department of Health
Food Protection Program
7178 Columbia Gateway Drive
Columbia, MD 21046
410-313-1772
866-313-6300 (toll free 24/7 access)
www.howardcountymd.gov/DisplayPrimary.aspx?id=4294969400
Food Establishment Inspection Program
howard.envhealth.info/
Maine Department of Health and Human Services
Division of Environmental Health
221 State Street
Augusta, ME 04333
207-287-8016
www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/el/postings.htm
Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention
286 Water Street, State House Station 11
Augusta, ME 04333
800-606-0215
www.maine.gov/dhhs/boh/food_safety_in_maine.html
Report a Foodborne Illness
800-821-5821 (24 hr access)
Maine Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources
www.maine.gov/agriculture/qar/index.html
University of Maine Food Safety Program
5741 Libby Hall
Orono, ME 04469
207-581-3188
extension.umaine.edu/food-health/food-safety/
Portland Health & Human Services
389 Congress Street
Portland, ME 04101
207-874-8633
http://www.portlandmaine.gov/610/Food-Safety
Portland Restaurant Inspections
www.pressherald.com/special/portland_maine_restaurant_inspection_report.html
Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals
Food and Drug Unit
PO Box 629
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0629
225-342-9500
dhh.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/page/300
Louisiana Community Health Units (by Parish)
www.dhh.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/page/394
Reporting Foodborne/Waterborne Disease
1450 Poydras Street, Suite 2146
New Orleans, LA 70112
504-568-8316
www.dhh.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/page/535
Louisiana Restaurant Inspections
inspections.eatsafe.la.gov/default.aspx
Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry
Food Quality
PO Box 1951
Baton Rouge, LA 70821
225-925-3772
http://www.ldaf.state.la.us/food-safety/
New Orleans Health Department
1300 Perdido Street, Suite 8E18
New Orleans, LA 70112
311
www.nola.gov/health-department/
Kentucky Department Public Health
Cabinet for Health and Family Services
275 E Main Street, 1E-B
Frankfort, KY 40621
502-564-7181
www.chfs.ky.gov/dph/info/phps/food.htm
Kentucky Department of Agriculture
Consumer & Environmental Protection
107 Corporate Drive
Frankfort, KY 40601
502-573-0282
www.kyagr.com/consumer/division-of-food-distribution.html
Louisville Health and Wellness
400 East Gray Street
Louisville, KY 40202
502-574-6520
http://louisvilleky.gov/government/health-wellness/food-safety
Restaurant Inspections
http://portal.louisvilleky.gov/applications/RestaurantInspectionScores
Lexington-Fayette County Health Department
Environmental Health
804A Newtown Circle
Lexington, KY 40511
859-231-9791
www.lexingtonhealthdepartment.org/ProgramsServices/FoodProtection/tabid/200/Default.aspx
Barren River District (Bowling Green) Health Department
1109 State Street
Bowling Green, KY 42102
270-781-8039
270-202-5785 (24 hr access)
www.barrenriverhealth.org/mx/hm.asp?id=RestaurantScores
Kansas Department of Agriculture
Food Safety
109 SW Ninth Avenue
Topeka, KS 66612
785-296-3556
https://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/food-safety-lodging
Kansas Restaurant Inspections
https://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/food-safety-lodging/inspection-results
Kansas Department of Health and Environment
Curtis State Office Building
1000 SW Jackson
Topeka, Kansas 66612
785-296-1500
www.kdheks.gov/epi/foodborne.htm
Sedgwick County (Wichita) Health Department
1900 E Ninth Street
Wichita, KS 67214
316-660-7300
www.sedgwickcounty.org/healthdept/
Report a Foodborne Illness
316-660-5555 (24 hr access)
Johnson County (Overland Park) Health Department
http://www.jocogov.org/health
Wyandotte County (Kansas City) Health Department
619 Ann Avenue
Kansas City, KS 66101
913-321-4803
www.wycokck.org/dept.aspx?id=488
Iowa Department of Public Health
Bureau of Environmental Health
321 E 12th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-7689
www.idph.state.ia.us/eh/food_safety.asp
Iowa Food System Council
www.iowafoodsystemscouncil.org
Center for Acute Disease Epidemiology (CADE)
www.idph.state.ia.us/Cade/Foodborne.aspx
Iowa State University Food Safety Project
www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsafety/
Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals
Food and Consumer Safety Bureau
www.state.ia.us/government/dia/page3.html
Polk County (Des Moines) Health Department
1907 Carpenter Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50314
515-286-3798
ms.polkcountyiowa.gov/health/
Linn County (Cedar Rapids) Health Department
935 2nd Street SW
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
319-892-5000
http://ia-linncounty.civicplus.com/603/Food-Safety
Scott County (Davenport) Health Department
Food Protection Program
600 W Fourth Street
Davenport, Iowa 52801
563-326-8618
www.scottcountyiowa.com/health/food.php
Indiana Department of Health
Food Protection
100 North Senate Avenue, N855
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-234-8569
www.in.gov/isdh/20640.htm
Indiana Food Protection (by County)
www.in.gov/isdh/23962.htm
Report a Complaint to the Health Department
www.in.gov/isdh/20887.htm
Indiana Food Defense Program
317-233-8476
www.in.gov/isdh/20994.htm
Marion County (Indianapolis area) Department of Food Safety
3838 N Rural Street
Indianapolis, IN 46205
317-221-2222
www.mchd.com/fdp.htm
Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health
200 E Berry Street, Suite 360
Fort Wayne, IN 46802
260-449-7561
http://www.allencountyhealth.com/get-informed/environmental-health-hazards/consumer-alerts/
Evansville & Vanderburgh County Department of Health
Food Safety Program
420 Mulberry Street
Evansville, Indiana 47713-1231
812- 435-2400
www.evansville.in.gov/Index.aspx?page=623
Illinois Department of Public Health
535 West Jefferson Street
Springfield, IL 62761
217-782-4977
www.idph.state.il.us
Report Foodborne Illness (Health Departments by County)
www.idph.state.il.us/local/alpha.htm
Illinois Department of Agriculture
Food Inspection
PO Box 19281, State Fairgrounds
Springfield, IL 62794-9281
217- 782-2172
www.agr.state.il.us/programs/consumer/foodinsp.html
Restaurant Inspections (Chicago)
webapps.cityofchicago.org/healthinspection.jsp
Report Foodborne Illness
Chicago: 312-747-3663 | @foodbornechi (Twitter)
Suburban Cook County: @foodsafecookco (Twitter)
Cook County Department of Public Health
Food Safety Resources
15900 S Cicero Avenue – Building E
Oak Forest, IL 60452
708-633-4000
http://cookcountypublichealth.org/services/food-safety
Kane County Health Department
Environmental Health
1240 N Highland Avenue
Aurora, IL 60506
Or
1750 Grandstand Place
Elgin, IL 60123
630-444-3040
kanehealth.com/food_safety.htm
Idaho Department of Health and Welfare
Food Protection Program
PO Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
208-334-6996
www.healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/Health/FoodProtection/tabid/96/Default.aspx
Questions/To Request Informational CD
208-334-5938
Idaho Health Districts (Reporting Illness, Restaurant Inspections, and More)
www.healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/Health/HealthDistricts/tabid/97/Default.aspx
Idaho Department of Agriculture
Food Safety Program
2270 Old Penitentiary Road
Boise, Idaho 83712
208-332-8500
www.agri.idaho.gov/Categories/InspectionsExams/FoodSafety/indexfoodSafetyHome.php
Boise Area Food Establishment Inspection Records
secure.cdhd.idaho.gov/cdhpublic/LicenseBrowser.aspx
Hawaii Department of Health
591 Ala Moana Boulevard
Honolulu, HI 96813
808-586-8012
health.hawaii.gov/food-drug/for-consumers/
http://hdoa.hawaii.gov/blog/ag-resources/food-safety-on-farm/
Reporting Foodborne Illness (District Health Offices)
Oahu 808-586-4586
Maui 808-984-8213
Kauai 808-241-3563
Hilo 808-933-0912
Kona 808-322-4877
808-566-5049 (after hours)
800-360-2575 (toll free)
Hawaii Food Education
www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/NEW/index.html
Hawaii Department of Agriculture
hdoa.hawaii.gov/agricultural-resources/
Georgia Department of Health
Office of Environmental Health
2 Peachtree Street NW, 13 Floor
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-657-6534
dph.georgia.gov/environmental-health
Environmental Health Inspections
dph.georgia.gov/environmental-health-inspections
Digital Health Department
http://www.garrisonenterprises.com/
Fulton County Health & Wellness (Atlanta)
141 Pryor Street
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-612-4000
fultoncountyga.gov/dhw-home
Restaurant Inspections
fultoncountyga.gov/dhw-restaurant-inspections
Richmond County Health Department (Augusta)
950 Laney-Walker Boulevard
Augusta, Georgia 30901
706-721-5900
www.ecphd.com/common/content.asp?PAGE=661
Columbus Department of Public Health
Office of Environmental Health
2100 Comer Avenue
Columbus, GA 31904
888-810-4316 toll free
www.columbushealth.com/chd/columbusHealth/index.cfm/community/environmental-health/
Emergency/After Hours
1-800-PUB-HLTH (782-4584)
Florida Department of Health
Food and Waterborne Disease Program
4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin #A08
Tallahassee, FL 32399
850-245-4401
doh.state.fl.us/environment/medicine/foodsurveillance/FoodandWaterborneDiseaseProgramFinalIndexPage.html
On Facebook
www.facebook.com/FLDepartmentofHealth
Reporting a Problem with Food in Florida
doh.state.fl.us/environment/medicine/foodsurveillance/HowtoReportaProblemwithFoodinFlorida.htm
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Division of Food Safety
3125 Conner Boulevard, Suite D
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
850-245-5595
University of Florida Food Safety and Quality
fycs.ifas.ufl.edu/foodsafety/
Florida Restaurant Inspections (All Counties)
www.ledgerdata.com/restaurant-inspections/alachua/
Hillsborough County Department of Health (Tampa)
1105 E Kennedy Boulevard
Tampa, FL 33602
813-307-8000
www.hillscountyhealth.org/
Dade County Department of Health (Miami)
Miami-Dade Service Sites
http://miamidade.floridahealth.gov/programs-and-services/clinical-and-nutrition-services/service-sites.htm
Contact 24/7
305-324-2400
www.dadehealth.org
Duval County Department of Health (Jacksonville)
900 University Boulevard, N
Jacksonville, FL 32211
904-253-1000
www.dchd.net/our-programs/epidemiology
Delaware Department of Health
Office of Food Protection
417 Federal Street
Dover, DE 19901
302-744-4546
www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/hsp/ofp.html
Food Establishment Inspection Reports
dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/hsp/Default.aspx
Colorado Department of Public Health
Division of Environmental Health
4300 Cherry Creek Drive South B-2
Denver, Colorado 80246=
303-692-3645
www.cdphe.state.co.us/cp/
Colorado Department of Agriculture
Fruit and Vegetable Section
PO Box 407
Monte Vista, CO 81144
719-852-4749
Reporting Foodborne Illness by County
www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CDPHE-Main/CBON/1251588365684
Colorado Inspection & Consumer Services
www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/ag_ICS/CBON/1251599400393
Food Safety (Statewide)
www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/ag_Main/CBON/1251634013356
Tri-County (Denver area) Health Department
6162 South Willow Drive, Suite 100
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
303-220-9200
http://www.tchd.org/246/Restaurants-Grocery
http://www.tchd.org/171/Infectious-Diseases
Denver Restaurant Health Inspection Reports
www.denvergov.org/eh/tabid/435231
Denver Foodborne Illness Investigations
www.denvergov.org/?TabId=391974
El Paso County (Colorado Springs) Food Safety
www.elpasocountyhealth.org/service/food-safety
California Department of Public Health
Food and Drug Branch
1500 Capitol Avenue, MS 7602
Sacramento, CA 95899
916- 650-6500
www.cdph.ca.gov/programs (Follow link to Food, Drug, and Radiation Safety)
California Department of Food and Agriculture
Inspection Services Division
1220 N Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-900-5020
inspection_services@cdfa.ca.gov
Consumer Complaints (Statewide)
800-495-3232
Restaurant Inspections by County
www.ca.gov/OnlineServices/OS_Consumers_inspections.html
Los Angeles Area Food Illness Report
https://www.visualcmr.net/webvcmr/pages/public/pub_FBI_Report.aspx
Los Angeles Area Restaurant/Market Ratings
publichealth.lacounty.gov/rating/
San Diego Food Complaints
http://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/deh/fhd/food/foodcomplaints.html
San Diego Foodborne Epidemiology
http://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/deh/fhd/food/foodborneepidemiology.html
Santa Clara County Food Facility Inspections
sccinspections.org/onlineinsp/
San Francisco Restaurant Safety Scores
www.sfdph.org/dph/EH/Food/score/default.asp
San Francisco Food Safety
www.sfdph.org/dph/EH/Food/default.asp
Arizona Department of Health Services
www.azdhs.gov/preparedness/epidemiology-disease-control/food-safety-environmental-services/index.php
Office of Food Safety and Environmental Health
150 N 18th Avenue, #140
Phoenix, AZ 85007
602-364-3118
Maricopa County Department of Public Health
4041 N Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-506-6900
www.maricopa.gov/publichealth/
Maricopa County Food Safety Inspections
www.azcentral.com/HealthInspectionMaps
Pima County Health Department
webcms.pima.gov/government/health_department
Pima County Consumer Health & Food Safety Administration
webcms.pima.gov/health/food-safety/
Pima County Restaurant Ratings
www.pima.gov/restaurantratings/
State of Alaska Food Safety and Sanitation Program
555 Cordova Street, 5th Floor
Anchorage, AK 99501
907- 269-7501 / 877-233-3663 (87 Safe Food – toll free)
www.dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/index.htm
Food Safety & Sanitation by Location
www.dec.state.ak.us/eh/fss/Food/sanstaff.htm
Food Safety Inspections (Statewide)
www.dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/Food/food_inspections.htm
Making a Complaint (Food and Sanitation)
http://dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/Food/Complaints.html
Food Safety for Consumers
dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/consumers/consumers.html
Foodborne & Waterborne Disease Information
www.epi.hss.state.ak.us/id/dod/foodwater/default.htm
Anchorage Area Food Safety Inspections
hhs.muni.org/fss/
Alabama Department of Public Health
201 Monroe Street, Suite 1250
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-206-5300 / 800-ALA-1818
www.adph.org
Division of Food, Milk, and Lodging
www.adph.org/foodsafety/
Food Establishment Scores
www.adph.org/foodscores
County Health Departments in Alabama
www.adph.org/administration/Default.asp?id=505
Jefferson County Department of Health
1400 Sixth Avenue South
Birmingham, AL 35233
205-933-9110
www.jcdh.org
Mobile County Health Department
251 North Bayou Street
Mobile, AL 36603
251-690-8158
www.mobilecountyhealth.org
Mobile County Department of Food & Lodging
251-690-8116