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Updating Economic Burden of Foodborne Diseases Estimates for Inflation and Income Growth

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  • Hoffmann, Sandra
  • Ahn, Jae-Wan

Abstract

This report updates the USDA, Economic Research Service’s (ERS) 2013 estimates of the economic burden for the 15 leading foodborne pathogens for inflation and income growth to 2018. USDA, ERS estimates of the economic burden of foodborne diseases include the costs of medical care, the value of lost productivity due to illness-induced absences from jobs, and the economic burden of premature deaths from foodborne illness. These estimates reflect the impact on consumers, not producers. Inflation and income growth result in a higher economic burden of foodborne illness, even holding constant disease incidence and health care use. We found that in 2018 dollars, the economic burden of these pathogens was $17.6 billion, an increase of about $2 billion, or 13 percent, over the 2013 USDA, ERS estimate of $15.5 billion for the same 15 pathogens. Overall inflation from 2013 to 2018 was 7.8 percent, and real per capita gross domestic product (GDP) growth was 8.8 percent. This means the value of preventing these foodborne illnesses increased by about 5 percentage points more than overall inflation and 4 percentage points more than income over the 5-year period. This paper also explores the role of price inflation and income growth in driving changes in the economic burden of these illnesses.

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  • Hoffmann, Sandra & Ahn, Jae-Wan, "undated". "Updating Economic Burden of Foodborne Diseases Estimates for Inflation and Income Growth," USDA Miscellaneous 316343, United States Department of Agriculture.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:usdami:316343
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.316343
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