Food Engineering logo
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • TOPICS
  • EXCLUSIVES
  • MEDIA
  • FOOD MASTER
  • EVENTS
  • RESOURCES
  • EMAGAZINE
  • SIGN UP!
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • NEWS
  • Latest Headlines
  • Manufacturing News
  • People & Industry News
  • Plant Openings
  • Recalls
  • Regulatory Watch
  • Supplier News
  • PRODUCTS
  • New Plant Products
  • New Retail Products
  • TOPICS
  • Alternative Protein
  • Automation
  • Cannabis
  • Cleaning | Sanitation
  • Fabulous Food Plants
  • Food Safety
  • Maintenance Strategies
  • OEE
  • Packaging
  • Sustainability
  • More
  • EXCLUSIVES
  • Plant Construction Survey
  • Plant of the Year
  • Sustainable Plant of the Year
  • State of Food Manufacturing
  • Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies
  • MEDIA
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Webinars
  • White Papers
  • EVENTS
  • Food Automation & Manufacturing Symposium and Expo
  • Industry Events
  • RESOURCES
  • eNewsletter
  • Custom Content & Marketing Services
  • FE Store
  • Government Links
  • Industry Associations
  • Market Research
  • Classified Ads
  • EMAGAZINE
  • eMagazine
  • Archive Issue
  • Advertise
Food Engineering logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Food Engineering logo
  • NEWS
    • Latest Headlines
    • Manufacturing News
    • People & Industry News
    • Plant Openings
    • Recalls
    • Regulatory Watch
    • Supplier News
  • PRODUCTS
    • New Plant Products
    • New Retail Products
  • TOPICS
    • Alternative Protein
    • Automation
    • Cannabis
    • Cleaning | Sanitation
    • Fabulous Food Plants
    • Food Safety
    • Maintenance Strategies
    • OEE
    • Packaging
    • Sustainability
    • More
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Plant Construction Survey
    • Plant of the Year
    • Sustainable Plant of the Year
    • State of Food Manufacturing
    • Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies
  • MEDIA
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • FOOD MASTER
  • EVENTS
    • Food Automation & Manufacturing Symposium and Expo
    • Industry Events
  • RESOURCES
    • eNewsletter
    • Custom Content & Marketing Services
    • FE Store
    • Government Links
    • Industry Associations
    • Market Research
    • Classified Ads
  • EMAGAZINE
    • eMagazine
    • Archive Issue
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!

Food Safety: Listeria and RTE foods, A step in the right direction?

By Richard F. Stier
September 9, 2003
Safer foods will come from better process control, not more tests.

RECENTLY THERE HAVE BEEN SIGNIFIcant documents published on Listeria monocytogenes and ready-to-eat (RTE) foods. The most far-reaching of these is the new USDA/FSIS regulation on Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat Meat and Poultry. The ruling calls for all meat and poultry establishments producing RTE products that are exposed to the environment after cooking to develop written programs to control Listeria monocytogenes and to verify the effectiveness of those programs through testing. Testing data and plant-generated information relevant to their controls also must be shared with FSIS. The rule also encourages all plants to employ additional and more effective Listeria monocytogenes measures listed below.

1. Plants must employ both a post-lethality treatment and a growth inhibitor for Listeria monocytogenes on RTE products.

2. Operators must employ either a post-lethality treatment or a growth inhibitor for the pathogen on RTE products. Establishments choosing this alternative will be subject to more frequent FSIS verification activity than those choosing alternative 1.

3. An operation may employ sanitation measures only. Plants choosing this alternative will be targeted with even more frequent verifications. The Agency will place increased scrutiny on operations that produce hot dogs and deli meats.

Other Listeria-related documents are a pair of articles published in the April 2003 edition of Journal of Food Protection, prepared by National Food Processors Association (NFPA). The first is entitled “Survey of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat Foods” and the second “Listeria monocytogenes: Low Level Equals Low Risk.” The piece focuses on the most comprehensive work ever completed on the prevalence of the pathogen in the food supply. Nearly 32,000 samples were collected from eight categories of food (one of which was luncheon meats) and tested for both the presence and numbers of the pathogen. All samples were collected from retail markets. Luncheon meats made up the largest number of samples, including products that were sliced in-store and at the manufacturing site. Only 82 or 0.89% of the samples was found to contain the pathogen and only eight samples exceeded 100 or 102 Listeria monocytogenes per gram.

The Canadian government and several European Union nations have set a maximum limit for Listeria monocytogenes of 100 colony forming units per gram. If the US applied these standards, only 0.087% of the samples would have been in violation. Using the data collected in the survey and both statistics and the principles of risk assessment, the authors concluded that low levels of Listeria monocytogenes do not pose a significant health risk. The piece further suggests that US regulatory agencies consider adopting a non-zero risk policy and encourage development and adoption of technologies, such as hurdles, that will minimize the growth of the pathogen in foods. FDA risk assessment experts agreed with the direction proposed in the NFPA publication, but why is the same not true for FSIS?

The rule itself does not seem to be written to protect the public health. But the comments that precede the actual regulation and the appendix do. The emphasis on adoption of new technologies and interventions to control or eliminate the pathogen are excellent. The real question is whether testing will really help achieve product safety.

Both the USDA and FDA have supported HACCP for many years and were active partners on the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) team that produced the report, “An Evaluation of the Role of Microbiological Criteria for Foods and Food Ingredients” in 1985. This document jump-started the move toward adoption of HACCP by the US food industry. One of its basic tenets was that HACCP was the best means to assure the production of safe foods. HACCP depends on process control, not testing.

Consumer groups have lobbied for more testing as a means of assuring food safety, but industry experts understand that one cannot achieve quality or safety through more tests.

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Richard stier 200px
Richard Stier is a consulting food scientist who has helped food processors develop safety, quality and sanitation programs. He believes in emphasizing the importance of how these programs can help companies increase profits. Stier holds degrees in food science from Rutgers University and the University of California at Davis. He is a Contributing Editor for Food Engineering. Email: rickstier4@aol.com

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
to unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    With a CAGR of 12.07%, Bonafide Research estimates this...
    People & Industry News
  • skilled MEP worker

    Predicting Food and Beverage Manufacturing Trends for 2024

    The two words that should be kept in mind are labor and...
    Automation
    By: Derrick Teal
  • cleaning and sanitation

    The basics of cleaning and sanitation in food plants

    Sanitation maintains or restores a state of cleanliness...
    Cleaning | Sanitation
    By: Richard F. Stier
Subscribe For Free!
  • eMagazine
  • eNewsletter
  • Online Registration
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Customer Service

Food Plant Openings and Expansions May 2025

Food Plant Openings and Expansions May 2025

OT Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Food Manufacturing Facilities

OT Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Food Manufacturing Facilities

Understanding Impacts of OT Cybersecurity Events in Food Manufacturing

Understanding Impacts of OT Cybersecurity Events in Food Manufacturing

Food Plant Openings and Expansions April 2025

Food Plant Openings and Expansions April 2025

More Videos

Popular Stories

Vilter IHP in plant

Industrial Heat Pumps: Sustainable Energy Solutions for Now and the Future

FMTE Formed by Four Food Manufacturing Companies

Coalition Unites Europe’s Food Manufacturing Technologies and Equipment Sector

Sanitation worker spraying water

Fighting the Foodborne Bacteria War with Cleaning and Sanitation

CHECK OUT OUR NEW ESSENTIAL TOPICS

Alternative ProteinAutomationCleaning/SanitationFabulous Food Plants

Food SafetyMaintenance StrategiesOEE

PackagingSustainability

Events

June 17, 2025

Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ State of the Cold Chain

Kelley Rodriguez, Editor in Chief of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods, will be joined in this 60-minute webinar by industry experts to help unpack the latest research.

January 1, 2030

Webinar Sponsorship Information

For webinar sponsorship information, visit www.bnpevents.com/webinars or email webinars@bnpmedia.com.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

See More Products

Plant of the Year

Related Articles

  • Food Safety Working Group is a step in the right direction

    See More
  • Antimicrobial activity of soy sauce

    Take the time to do food safety right

    See More
  • Food Safety

    Building a food safety culture requires buy-in from everyone

    See More

Related Products

See More Products
  • small-occ.jpg

    Occupational Health and Safety in the Food and Beverage Industry

  • food crime.jpg

    Food Crime: An Introduction to Deviance in the Food Industry

  • statical.jpg

    Statistical Process Control for the Food Industry: A Guide for Practitioners and Managers

See More Products
×

Elevate your expertise in food engineering with unparalleled insights and connections.

Get the latest industry updates tailored your way.

JOIN TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Food Master
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing

Food Engineering logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Food Engineering logo
  • NEWS
    • Latest Headlines
    • Manufacturing News
    • People & Industry News
    • Plant Openings
    • Recalls
    • Regulatory Watch
    • Supplier News
  • PRODUCTS
    • New Plant Products
    • New Retail Products
  • TOPICS
    • Alternative Protein
    • Automation
    • Cannabis
    • Cleaning | Sanitation
    • Fabulous Food Plants
    • Food Safety
    • Maintenance Strategies
    • OEE
    • Packaging
    • Sustainability
    • More
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Plant Construction Survey
    • Plant of the Year
    • Sustainable Plant of the Year
    • State of Food Manufacturing
    • Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies
  • MEDIA
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • FOOD MASTER
  • EVENTS
    • Food Automation & Manufacturing Symposium and Expo
    • Industry Events
  • RESOURCES
    • eNewsletter
    • Custom Content & Marketing Services
    • FE Store
    • Government Links
    • Industry Associations
    • Market Research
    • Classified Ads
  • EMAGAZINE
    • eMagazine
    • Archive Issue
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!