Global incidence of food-borne diseases is quite
alarming. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDCP) estimates show an annual occurrence of 47.8
million, 2 million and 750,000 food- borne illnesses in the
United States, United Kingdom and France respectively.
It is also estimated that in Australia, there are 5.4 million
cases of food-borne illnesses every year, causing 18,000
hospitalizations, 120 deaths, 21 million lost days off work,
1.2 million doctor consultations and 300,000 prescriptions
for antibiotics.