Salmonella bacteria are a leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States, resulting in 1.28 million illnesses and 238 deaths each year. At the heart of this ongoing public health crisis is the poultry industry, which accounts for at least a quarter of all salmonella infections. A recent investigation by Farm Forward sheds light on how this problem persists. By analyzing USDA salmonella regulations and inspection records, federal purchasing data for nutrition assistance programs, and humane handling reports, our findings reveal how regulatory failures, industry practices, and government procurement policies together undermine food safety.
Key Findings:
- USDA permits significant salmonella contamination levels in poultry: USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) sets standards for salmonella in poultry, allowing for high percentages of salmonella contamination in meat.
- FSIS lacks authority to enforce its salmonella standards: The agency cannot shut down plants for repeated contamination, stop contaminated products from entering the food supply, or issue recalls—even when plants repeatedly fail its standards for contamination.
- Major poultry companies sell contaminated products: Companies like Perdue, Foster Farms, Cargill, Butterball, and Costco’s supplier (Lincoln Premium Poultry) have repeatedly received the USDA’s worst rating (Category 3) for excessive salmonella contamination in certain products across multiple years without consequences.
- Meat from contaminated plants has likely been purchased for federal nutrition assistance programs like school lunches: USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) commodity procurement program has knowingly supplied poultry products from plants that have repeatedly failed salmonella standards to federal nutrition assistance programs, like the National School Lunch Program and the Emergency Food Assistance Program.
- Inhumane treatment of birds may contribute to higher salmonella risk: Birds raised in crowded, stressful conditions are more likely to shed bacteria. Some facilities with frequent humane handling violations also have Category 3 salmonella records.
- Regulatory reform efforts have stalled: FSIS proposed a rule in August 2024 to limit salmonella in raw poultry, but withdrew the proposal in May 2025.
- Inspection records lack transparency: Although inspection reports are public, the data is difficult to access and incorporate into purchasing decisions.
Despite clear risks to health and mortality, current regulations fail to protect the public. The federal government’s inability to enforce the standards it sets underscores a systemic failure to align food policy with public health and animal welfare standards. Against this backdrop, it’s no wonder that the poultry industry has consistently failed to adopt responsible practices to control salmonella.
To reverse this trend, the USDA must be empowered to enforce stronger standards, eliminate contaminated meat from public programs, ensure humane handling, hold poultry producers accountable, and improve transparency so the public can make informed choices about what they eat. Until these reforms are enacted, the poultry industry will continue to operate with minimal accountability—putting millions of Americans at unnecessary risk of illness from a preventable and dangerous pathogen.
Read the report