Table 5:

Biological agents of important food-borne diseases and main epidemiological features

Disease agent	Important reservoir/carrier	Examples of food that can become contaminated
Bacteria
Bacillus cereus	Soil	Cooked rice, cooked meats, vegetables, starchy puddings
Brucella spp	Cattle, sheep, goats	Raw milk, dairy products
Campylobacter jejuni	Chickens, dogs, cattle, pigs, birds	Raw milk, poultry
Clostridium botulinum	Soil, mammals, birds, fish	Fish, meat, vegetables
Clostridium perfringens	Soil, animals, humans	Home-preserved honey, cooked meat, poultry, gravy, beans
Escherichia coli	Humans, cattle, poultry, sheep	Salads, raw vegetables, cheese, undercooked meat, raw milk
Mycobacterium bovis	Cattle	Raw milk
Salmonella spp.	Humans, animals	Meat, poultry, eggs, dairy products, vegetable salads
Shigella spp.	Humans	Potato, egg salad
Staphylococcus aureus	Humans	Ham, egg salads, poultry, cream-filled bakery products, ice cream, cheese
Vibrio cholerae	Humans	Salads, shellfish
Vibrio parahaemolyticus	Seawater, marine life	Raw fish, crabs and other shellfish
Yersinia enterocolitica	Water, wild animals, pigs, dogs, poultry	Milk, pork, poultry
Viruses
Hepatitis A virus	Humans	Shellfish, raw fruit, vegetables
Norwalk agents	Humans	Shellfish, salads
Protozoa
Cryptosporidium spp.	Humans, animals	Raw milk, raw sausage (non-fermented)
Entamoeba histolytica	Humans	Vegetables, fruits
Giardia lamblia	Humans, animals	Vegetables, fruits
Toxoplasma gondii	Cats, pigs	Undercooked meat, raw vegetables
Helminths
Ascaris lumbricoides	Humans	Soil-contaminated food
Trichuris trichiura	Humans	Soil-contaminated food
Taenia saginata	Cattle	Undercooked beef
Taenia solim	Pigs	Undercooked pork
Trichinella spiralis	Pigs, carnivores	Undercooked meat
Fasciola hepatica	Cattle, goats	Watercress
Paragonimus spp.	Freshwater crabs	Undercooked/raw crabs