1.1: History of Food Safety

As long as humans have existed, there must have been food-related deaths. Only in the modern world have these illnesses been able to be tracked, analyzed, and cataloged then determined to be food-related. Since the turn of the 20^th century, outbreaks of Streptococcus in raw milk, Botulism in canned products, and Salmonella Typhi in shellfish have caused hundreds of deaths (Jarvie, 2014, Part 1). Contamination of food can happen at every level of handling. Shellfish can become infected if harvested from waters containing untreated sewage. The same shellfish can become harmful in transport if it is not held at the correct temperature. Finally, shellfish must be appropriately handled in the kitchen by cooks, chefs, and servers who are aware of hygiene standards and knowledgeable about cooking methods and food safety to ensure it is safe to eat. As we have learned from history and seen in movies and television, for many years, hygiene was not thought to be a priority. But thanks to modern science, we can now determine what caused mass deaths throughout history by looking at symptoms and have linked much of the death to hygiene and unsanitary food handling practices.

Alexander the Great was born in 356 BCE. By age 20, he was King of Macedonia. His domain spanned from Greece to India, including Egypt. Alexander the Great built one of history’s most significant empires (National Geographic, 2023). This historically significant figure died at age 32 from a “mysterious” illness. Researchers now think, based on his symptoms, Alexander the Great died of Typhoid fever, which originates and spreads due to contaminated water and poor personal hygiene. Typhoid, specifically Salmonella Typhi, lives only in humans and spreads through contaminated food and water (University of Maryland Medical Center, 1998, June 22). The following graphic shows a timespan from unconfirmed cases of food related deaths and illness through the years up to confirmed cases in 2024.

We can thank author Upton Sinclair and his novel The Jungle for beginning modern food safety laws in the US. The Jungle is a work of fiction depicting immigrants’ lives in the early 20^th century and the health and safety practices of the Chicago meat packing business. Through the influence of this book, President Theodore Roosevelt was prompted to pass the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Federal Meat Inspection Act in 1906 ((Ho, 2022; Jarvie, 2014, Part 2). These laws were the first to address public health issues in the food service industry. They helped to establish Truth in Labeling laws when, in many cases, it was industry standard to add such products as formaldehyde and borax to disguise unsanitary manufacturing and production processes. Laws such as this led to the advancement and formation of more agencies to deal with food-related issues. The following shows a timeline of significant legislation.