How much do you know about foodborne disease? With recent food scares plus those holiday dinners to prepare for, perhaps not as much as you should. Senator Robert Casey (D-PA), alongside a panel of food safety experts, spoke today with the Make Our Food Safe Campaign in an effort to raise food safety awareness and move toward legislation and protection for consumers before the end of 2009.

The campaign, comprised of public health organizations, consumer organizations, and groups representing the families of victims of foodborne illness, released a report today with the Center for Foodborne Illness (CFI), documenting the long-term impact of foodborne illness, especially on children.

Foodborne illnesses cause thousands of deaths each year and many, many more hospitalizations. What you may not know, however, is the serious long-term effects it can have on those most vulnerable, children, the elderly and pregnant women. The most frightening consequences can include kidney failure, mental retardation and diabetes.

The campaign is attacking the problem from several fronts, including bipartisan legislation by Senator Casey and Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). The Eat Safe Act aims to bring an end to food smuggling in the United States; the Act would ensure that importers who bypass the Department of Agriculture's re-inspection process would be subject to civil penalties.

Most importantly, the campaign demands food safety guidelines to be implemented, better documentation and monitoring of foodborne illness, and recognition of foodborne illness as a serious public health issue.

The Make Our Food Safe Campaign includes the following organizations: American Public Health Association, Center for Foodborne Illness Research & Prevention, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Consumer Federation of American, Consumers Union, Food & Water Watch, The Pew Charitable Trusts, Safe Tables Our Priority, and Trust for America's Health.

Visit makeourfoodsafe.org for more information about the campaign and how you can make a difference.