Data from: Comanaging fresh produce for nature conservation and food safety

Fresh produce has become the primary cause of foodborne illness in the United States. A widespread concern that wildlife vector foodborne pathogens onto fresh produce fields has led to strong pressure on farmers to clear noncrop vegetation surrounding their farm fields. We combined three large datasets to demonstrate that pathogen prevalence in fresh produce is rapidly increasing, that pathogens are more common on farms closer to land suitable for livestock grazing, and that vegetation clearing is associated with increased pathogen prevalence over time. These findings contradict widespread food safety reforms that champion vegetation clearing as a pathogen mitigation strategy. More generally, our work indicates that achieving food safety and nature conservation goals in produce-growing landscapes is possible.

在美国，新鲜农产品已成为引发食源性疾病（foodborne illness）的首要诱因。当前普遍存在的担忧——野生动物会将食源性病原菌（foodborne pathogens）传播至新鲜农产品种植农田——给农户带来了巨大压力，迫使他们清除农田周边的非作物植被。本研究整合三大数据集，验证了三项核心结论：其一，新鲜农产品中的病原菌检出率正快速上升；其二，距离适宜畜牧放牧的用地越近的农田，病原菌检出率越高；其三，随着时间推移，植被清除与病原菌检出率升高存在显著关联。上述研究结论与主流食品安全改革理念相悖，后者将植被清除奉为病原菌防控的核心策略。从更广泛的层面而言，本研究证实，在农产品种植景观中同时达成食品安全与自然保护目标是可行的。