Fear Thy Fork: 10 of the Scariest Recent Food Recalls and Outbreaks

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10 Reasons to Fear Your Food Supply

It was sad and scary news to peanut butter lovers everywhere when Trader Joe's recalled a batch of peanut butter this week. And with good reason—foodborne illness is no joke. But the reality is that outbreaks and recalls happen all the time, not just among high-profile companies. One in six Americans become ill from a foodborne illness each year. From meats to veggies to candies, no part of the food system is immune to the lax regulation and bureaucracy that get in the way of a safe and healthy food system. Here are just ten of the scariest outbreaks of the last few years.

(Photo: Rebecca Weaver/Getty Images)

Half a Billion Eggs

In the summer of 2010, more than 550 million eggs suspected of salmonella poisoning were recalled and traced back to just two farms in Iowa. To make matters worse, one FDA official said the whole thing was preventable.

(Photo: Shana Novak/Getty Images)

36 Million Pounds of Turkey

At least 76 illnesses and one death spanning 26 states came after 36 million pounds of turkey laden with bacteria made its way into the market in 2011. Cargill, the guilty company, had a recall on beef just four years earlier.

(Photo: imwaytoobusy.com)

Cantaloupe Chaos

Cantaloupes became a scary edible in 2011 when listeria on the fruits led to 30 deaths across 11 states. Prior to the outbreak, auditors visited the facility and rated it "superior." What followed shortly after was the deadliest foodborne illness outbreak in 25 years.

(Photo: Brian Gordon Green/Getty Images)

A Lesson Not Learned

Little was learned from the horrific cantaloupe outbreak of 2011. Just a year later, tainted fruits have again sickened at least 141 people and caused two deaths across Indiana, Kentucky and Minnesota.

(Photo: Pamela N. Martin/Getty Images)

Salmonella-Tainted Mangos

In August of this year, mangoes from Mexico became a public-health threat. The salmonella-tainted fruit have sickened more than 100 people.

(Photo: Visage/Getty Images)

Ricotta Cheese

Ricotta salata cheese became a deadly salad topping for three people this year when a batch from Forever Cheese of Astoria, New York, was contaminated with listeria. At least 14 additional people were sickened.

(Photo: Isabelle Rozenbaum/Getty Images)

300,000+ Pounds of Meat

Buona Vita, Inc., a New Jersey-based meatball producer, recalled approximately 324,770 pounds of frozen, ready-to-eat meat and poultry products due to a possible listeria contamination in July of this year.

(Photo: Joe Fox/Getty Images)

13,000 Pounds of Salad

With so many meats getting recalled, it's easy to put the blame on animal-production practices. But veggies are vulnerable, too. In August of this year, more than 13,000 pounds of salad had to be recalled after diced onions were suspected of listeria contamination.

(Photo: Tom Grill/Getty Images)

Lead in Your Red Vines

Not even candy is safe. Black licorice Red Vines were recently pulled from shelves after a batch was discovered to have elevated levels of lead in it.

(Photo: Brenbot/Creative Commons via Flickr)

Bag It: They're Tainted

Six states had to pull more than 1,077 cases of bagged salads from shelves at Walmart and Kroger stores due to a possible listeria contamination in June of this year.

(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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A sucker for sustainable agriculture and a good farmers market, Megan likes writing about food almost as much as eating it. If you don't want to know what's in your fruit/milk/meat, don't invite her to lunch. @babybokchoy | TakePart.com