Are you tired of having to follow news alerts of the latest food outbreaks or the stream of public safety notices recalling what used to be a grocery staple? Has it left you wondering what next you won’t able to eat.

High-profile cases of listeria in deli meat and investigations into the nation’s milk supply rattled Americans in 2024, leading many to question whether their food is safe.

It’s a fair concern. Recalls are rising. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported more food and cosmetic-related products being recalled by companies in the fiscal year that ended in September than in the previous four years.

But some food experts say the public’s fear is overblown. Not every recall implies an outbreak or foodborne illness. And what appears to be a more dangerous-sounding grocery aisle may instead be a selection of products more tightly regulated than before.

Salmonella, for example, had a number of outbreaks in 2024 that spanned multiple states. In January, it was found in charcuterie meats, then in April, it spurred a recall of fresh basil. From May 23 to Sept. 13, eggs became the problem — 93 people hospitalized across 12 states — and most recently, in November, cucumbers were to blame, with 16 people from 19 states falling ill.

Yet, the overall number of new 2024 outbreaks fell well below the reported five-year average, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

“Unless everyone starts eating canned food, there’s no way to keep outbreaks from happening,” said Robert Buchanan, who’s worked in food safety since the 1970s and is now the director of the University of Maryland’s Center for Food Safety and Security Systems. “Even then there’s [pathogens] that can live in a can.”

Identifying the source of outbreaks has become easier with genome sequencing, which allows investigators to view an organism’s DNA and scope out harmful bacteria. More smaller outbreaks are being reported to local health agencies with a rise in routine testing, he said. So it would make sense seeing more products recalled, which can also be issued in the case of mislabeled ingredients or a malfunction.

In large, even deadly outbreaks, such as the July recall of 7 million pounds of Boar’s Head deli meat for listeriosis — a disease related to the bacteria listeria, which killed 10 people —a greater focus on tracing is helping authorities remove contaminated products from the market faster. The Virginia factory at the source of the outbreak was shut down in September and liverwurst, the meat it was found in, was discontinued.

There’s no simple answer to why an outbreak happens, according to Jennifer McEntire, a food microbiologist who worked with the U.S Department of Agriculture and FDA. Now she does consulting work for the food industry. Despite better enforcement and more technology, some cases from 2024 continue to stump her.

Carrots are not often linked to Escherichia coli, or E. coli bacteria, she said, despite the vegetable leading to more than a dozen hospitalizations and the recall of both whole and baby carrots in retailers from Costco to Trader Joe’s this year. “There are rules that govern produce safety and they’re only getting more stringent,” she said. Over time these bacteria mutate, she said, and have to be controlled in new ways.

Some of these ways have yet to be discovered, as Buchanan pointed out with the December emergence of bird flu in dairy cows, which is now contaminating raw milk. Last week, tracing spurred California to declare the issue a state of emergency. In the new year, this will be the case to watch, he said.

“Jumping a species barrier is fascinating and worrisome,” he said of the recent food safety alert. “I’m not sure how some of these outbreaks are going to be handled. … It’s incredibly rare.”

In Maryland, the sale of raw milk is highly regulated, though testing of the state’s milk supply is expected to begin in January.

“In many ways we have pushed the envelope of our food system,” said Kantha Shelke, a senior lecturer on food safety at Johns Hopkins University.

Produce is being recalled for outbreaks more commonly found in meats, and even attempts to follow the new wave of healthy eating — fewer chemicals, more organic — is subject to contamination.

Precut veggies and fruit sit in bags that can grow microbes if certain chemicals are not added to preserve freshness which, Shelke said, consumers concerned about seeing their food further processed can grow weary of. “It’s like a buffet for them,” she said of the bacteria.

What people tend not to understand is how long the U.S distribution process is, she said. Packaged food is shipped across the country during all seasons, so by the time it shows up in stores, contamination may have already occurred, Shelke said. In recent years, the process has continued to lengthen, potentially introducing more pathogens to food that then may sit for too long in grocery aisles.

She encourages Americans to wash their food, despite the “already washed” label, and pay attention to declared recalls and expiration dates before consuming any product. While there are thousands of jurisdictions looking to enforce food safety, the food industry is massive.

“The way we produce food, the speed we’re producing new things, is really something the FDA can’t keep up,” she said of the recent recalls.

“Are we as safe as we could be? No,” she said. “We’re still learning about it.”