Federal researchers have mapped out the percentage of foodborne illnesses associated with specific food groups. The CDC, FDA, and U.S. Department of Agriculture used data on nearly 1000 outbreaks from 1998 to 2012 — with a focus on the most recent 5 years — for four common foodborne pathogens:
-Campylobacter illnesses were most often attributable to dairy (66%), often unpasteurized, and chicken (8%)
-Most Escherichia coli O157 illnesses were caused by beef (46%) and vegetable row crops (36%).
-Listeria monocytogenes illnesses were often caused by fruits (50%) and dairy (31%).
-Salmonella illnesses came from a wider variety of sources, including seeded vegetables (18%), eggs (12%), fruit (12%), chicken (10%), sprouts (8%), beef (9%), and pork (8%).
Source: New England Journal of Medicine