Six Americans have died and more than 20 others have been sickened in a growing listeria outbreak linked to prepackaged pasta meals.

It is upsetting, but not surprising. I worked on food safety at the Food and Drug Administration for many years. The U.S. has one of the safest food systems in the world, but too many Americans fall ill from contaminated food every year — and too many families experience tragic, preventable loss. That’s unacceptable in the 21st century.

The problem isn’t just that outbreaks happen. It’s that when they do, our investigations often fall short. Instead of learning from mistakes that cause outbreaks and preventing them from happening again, we too often repeat them.

Why? Partly because the responsibility of investigating outbreaks and ensuring they don’t hap

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