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Foodborne illness outbreaks – Yelp to the Rescue!

Chris Brunner, June 3, 2014

Steak and tomato on plateYelp can be a useful tool when searching for just the right restaurant. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene used Yelp reviews to help them find unreported foodborne illness. With buzzwords, such as “sick,” “vomit” and diarrhea” a computer program, developed by Columbia University, helped NYC health officials analyze foodborne illness outbreaks. Read more about the pilot project and why the CDC says the results suggest that online restaurant reviews might help to identify unreported outbreaks of foodborne illness and restaurants with deficiencies in food handling.