INTRODUCTION: Foodborne diseases could have health, political and economic consequences. The issue of food security is today a global concern and one of the priority goals of international and national organizations. They are among the main public health problems worldwide.

OBJECTIVES: Estimate the direct costs of Foodborne diseases in the insured poor population in the department of Bolivar, Colombia.

METHODS: Cross-sectional descriptive and analytical retrospective study based on the microdata of the Individual Registries of Health Services Delivery (RIPS) of the year 2017 of an insurer of the department of Bolívar. The ICD-10 diagnostic codes included were A01 - A04, A09, A23 and B23. The costs were estimated in US dollars (USD) of 2017, with the perspective of the third payer.

RESULTS: 68.6% of the costs were generated by male people, with respect to age groups, it was obtained that people over 45 years generated costs of 228,582 USD (54.2%), followed by people between 15 and 44 years 65,960 USD (15.6%), children between 1 and 4 years 63,972 USD (15.2%), children under one year 46,377 USD (11.0%) and people between 5 and 14 years 17,202 USD (4.1%). In terms of services, hospitalization accounted for 52.3%, followed by emergencies (13.2%), medications (12.6%) and diagnostic support (11.5%). Finally, the diagnosis of Diarrhea and gastroenteritis of presumed infectious origin represented 90% of the cost (USD 382,645).

CONCLUSIONS: The use of health services and the direct costs of Foodborne diseases in Colombia are high and are related to the severity of the symptoms. Health policies at the national level aimed at the effective control of the social determinants of health are necessary and will play an important role in reducing the associated economic impact.