The situation of food poisoning associated with dining in families in Yunnan during the period of 1998 - 2003 was analyzed. There were 286 events of food poisonings associated with dining in families with 3 592 victims and 165 deaths within the 6 years, accounting for 53.16 %, 29.05 % and 93.75 % of the total number of food poisoning events, victims and deaths respectively of that period. The number of poisoning events has been increasing year by year. The primacy of food led to poisoning was poisonous mushrooms. The majority of the food poisoning events occurred in rural areas. Enhancing the spread of food safety knowledge in whole society, particularly in rural areas, is an important measure to prevent the food poisoning associated with dining in families.