Messages to Test

Outbreak Messages to Test

1. Consumer advice:

• Do not eat, sell, or serve recalled FOOD XXX from COMPANY XXX.

• Return any recalled FOOD XXX to the store for a refund or throw it away.

• Even if some recalled FOOD XXX was eaten and no one got sick, do not eat it.

• If you do not know if the FOOD XXX you purchased was recalled, ask the place where you purchased it or throw it away.

• Contact a healthcare provider if you think you got sick from eating recalled FOOD XXX.

• CDC is not advising that consumers avoid eating properly cooked FOOD XXX.

• Consumers should be aware that FOOD XXX may be contaminated with germs and consumers should always follow steps to prevent (https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/reading-07-18/index.html#advice)food poisoning from these products.

• CDC will update the advice to consumers and retailers if more information comes available, such as a supplier or type of FOOD XXX linked to illness.

• Contaminated FOOD XXX that made people sick in this outbreak should no longer be available.

• CDC can never guarantee any food is completely safe to eat.

2. Investigation details:

• XXX people infected with the outbreak strain of GERM have been reported from XX states.

• This investigation is ongoing, and CDC will provide updates when more information is available.

• This outbreak appears to be over.

• This outbreak appears to be over. However, recalled products have a long shelf life and may still be in people’s homes. Consumers unaware of the recall could continue to eat these products and potentially get sick.

3. Illness/symptoms:

• Children younger than 5 years, adults older than 65 years, and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness.

• Pregnant women and their newborns, adults age 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to get sick with listeriosis.

Food-specific Messages to Test

1. Soft cheese messages (for high risk groups only):

• Avoid eating soft cheese, such as queso fresco, queso blanco, panela (queso panela), brie, Camembert, blue-veined, or feta, unless it is labeled as made with pasteurized milk. Be aware that Hispanic-style cheeses made from pasteurized milk, such as queso fresco, have caused Listeria infections, most likely because they were contaminated during cheese-making.

• Avoid soft cheese (e.g., Brie, Camembert, or Mexican-style cheese such as queso fresco). There is no need to avoid hard cheeses, cream cheese, cottage cheese, or yogurt.

• To reduce the risk of listeriosis, people at higher risk can avoid consuming soft cheeses, including those made with pasteurized milk.

• Do not eat soft cheese. Soft cheeses include brie, camembert, blue-veined cheese, Mexican-style cheeses such as queso fresco, and soft artisanal or farmstead cheeses. Hard cheeses, cottage cheese, and cream cheese can be eaten without concern about the risk of listeriosis.

2. Leafy greens messages (for all populations):

• Wash leafy greens under running water before eating, cutting, or cooking.

• Leafy greens labeled “prewashed” do not need to be washed again at home.

• Store leafy greens away from, and not next to or below, raw meat, poultry, and seafood. These items can drip juices that may have germs.

• People who want to lower their risk for foodborne illness can consider avoiding raw leafy greens.

• The safest produce is cooked; the next safest is washed.

• Leafy greens are plant leaves eaten as a raw vegetable. Leafy greens include lettuces, like iceberg and romaine, spinach, kale, and cabbage.

Social Media Messages to Test

Facebook:

• All Kellogg’s Honey Smacks cereal has been recalled. If you have it in your home, do not eat it. Throw it away or return to place of purchase. The cereal has been linked to 130 Salmonella illnesses. Do not buy this cereal, even if you see it for sale. (https://www.facebook.com/CDC/videos/1046087572237174/)

• E. coli outbreak: If you have store-bought chopped romaine lettuce at home, including salads and salad mixes with chopped romaine, don’t eat it and throw it away. If you don’t know if the lettuce is romaine, don’t eat it. (https://www.facebook.com/CDC/photos/a.184668026025/10155762222781026/?type=1&theater)

Twitter:

• Salmonella outbreak: Gravel Ridge Farms cage-free eggs recalled after 14 people sick in 2 states. Do not eat, serve or sell recalled eggs. Learn more: LINK. (https://twitter.com/CDCgov/status/1039251062732021760)

• Important advice for people in GA, IL, IN, KY, MI, MO, NC, OH: Check fridge and freezer for recalled pre-cut melon linked to Salmonella outbreak: LINK. (https://twitter.com/cdcgov/status/1005839765118312448)

Web User Experience

Look at an example of a Food Safety Alert and an Investigation Notice and discuss:

• Headers and Images

• Understanding of different page headings

  • Food Safety Alert

  • Investigation Notice

  • Advice to Consumers

  • Map of Reported Cases

  • Timeline of Reported Cases

• Layout/Can you find:

  • The number of cases?

  • The number of states?

  • The symptoms?

  • If there is a recall?

  • The advice?

  • The map?