DTU researchers have contributed to the international scientific research behind WHO’s new global estimates of foodborne illnesses, providing countries with a stronger evidence base to prevent disease and prioritize action.
“From Burden to Solution – Safe Food Everywhere.” This is the message for World Food Safety Day 2026. On this day, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) focus on how new knowledge about diseases, lives lost and social impacts can be translated into practical solutions.
WHO today released updated estimates of the global burden of foodborne illnesses and associated productivity losses. This estimate is based on international scientific research within the WHO’s Foodborne Disease Epidemiology Reference Group, FERG. Researchers from the DTU National Food Research Institute contributed scientific advice, methodology development, and technical analysis.
Food poisoning remains a global health burden
The WHO estimates that foodborne illnesses caused by 42 hazards caused 57.1 million DALYs worldwide in 2021.
Foodborne illnesses affect people around the world, but the burden is not evenly distributed. The new estimates make it possible to identify which diseases and risks contribute most in different regions of the world and where prevention can have the greatest impact. ”
Sara Monteiro Pires, Senior Researcher, DTU National Food Research Institute
WHO’s new estimates cover the burden of foodborne illnesses at the global, regional and national levels and show how the burden of foodborne illnesses is distributed across different foodborne illnesses, age groups and geographic regions. These are intended to help authorities identify the most important food safety issues, prioritize action and target prevention towards the risks that matter most in each country.
“Risks vary by region and country, so it is important that countries have access to data that can support decision-making in their own context. Knowing which hazards contribute most to the disease burden allows food safety interventions to be more effective,” said Sara Monteiro Pires.
More knowledge should lead to better prevention
The theme for World Food Safety Day 2026 is “From Burden to Solution – Safe Food Everywhere.” This highlights that data on disease burden only creates value when it is translated into action.
Researchers say the new estimates will help countries develop more effective food safety strategies, strengthen monitoring and identify gaps in data and research.
“This study shows why it is important to systematically measure the burden of disease and associated productivity losses. If countries actively use these estimates, they can make more informed decisions, allocate resources more effectively, and ultimately prevent further disease outbreaks,” says Sara Monteiro Pires.
She points out that this research could also have implications for the future of the food system.
“There is a strong global focus on the transition to more sustainable and plant-rich diets. In doing so, it is also important to understand the public health impact of food safety across the food chain, for both animal- and plant-based foods. The new estimates provide a strong basis for ensuring that future foods are healthy, sustainable and safe,” says Sara Monteiro Pires.
From global estimates to concrete sources
FERG was established by WHO to advise on methodologies for estimating the burden of foodborne illness and published the first-ever global estimates in 2015. Sara Monteiro Pires and Leah Sletting-Jacobsen from the DTU National Food Research Institute, along with other international experts, advised WHO on how to estimate the burden of disease, generate country-level estimates, and track food safety progress over time.
Sara Monteiro Pires chaired the work to estimate how food, different food groups, and other sources of infection contribute to the burden of foodborne illness. The study builds on DTU National Food Research Institute’s long-standing expertise in identifying and quantifying the causes of foodborne illnesses.
“If we want to effectively prevent disease, it is not enough to know which microorganisms and chemicals make people sick. We also need to know where the exposures come from. This knowledge allows us to move from burden estimation to practical food safety measures,” says Sara Monteiro Pires.
Chemical hazards are the main cause of burden
Lee Sletting Jacobsen chaired the effort to estimate the burden of disease from chemicals and toxins in food.
“The burden of chemical hazards in food may be less transmissible than acute infections, as health effects often occur over long periods of time. However, they can have a significant impact as they are associated with important non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and effects on child neurodevelopment,” said Senior Researcher Lee.
Remove Jacobsen from the DTU National Food Research Institute and continue:
“Therefore, it is important to include chemical hazards in the same prioritization framework to get a complete picture of the burden posed by unsafe food. However, the means to reduce risks are very different for microbiological and chemical hazards.”
Denmark already has a national model for estimating the burden of foodborne illness. This allows authorities to compare different food safety risks and prioritize interventions based on Danish data. This study shows how disease burden studies can be used to compare very different types of risks, from bacterial and viral infections to the long-term effects of chemicals in the diet.
“Denmark benefits from detailed, high-quality data that supports accurate national assessments. At the same time, WHO global estimates play an important role by providing a common framework to help countries identify and prioritize key challenges,” says Sara Monteiro Pires.
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DTU (Danish University of Technology)
