U.S. Food Safety Gets Low Marks
A new CBS News poll has found that nearly one quarter of Americans grade our country's food safety system as "D" or "F".
The poll results, part of a larger Food Safety in America report by CBS correspondent Bill Whitaker, showed that just one in three Americans are very confident that the food they buy is safe.
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Thirty-two percent say they are "very confident" about the safety of the food they buy, while 52 percent are "somewhat confident." The remaining 16 percent say they are not too confident or not at all confident in the safety of their food.
CBS reported that 25 percent of Americans get sick every from what they eat. In England and France, that number is 2 percent or less.
On average, 76 million Americans each year become victims of foodborne illness, including HUS E. coli,, Salmonella, Campylobacter, Listeria and E. coli in the brain. About 325,000 of those victims are hospitalized and 5,000 die.
In terms of assigning letter grades on the country's record of ensuring the safety of the food supply, the most commonly offered grades were C, chosen by 34 percent of those surveyed, and B, chosen by 33 percent.
Just seven percent gave the country an A when it comes to keeping the food supply safe. Eighteen percent offered a D, and six percent served up a failing grade.
