# Presentation: 930898

## International Guidelines for Listeria monocytogenes

- Rebecca Buckner
- Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration

## Japan

- Microbiological criteria for specific foods; otherwise no criteria
- MC = absence in 25 g for soft and semi-soft cheeses and uncooked meat products

## Australia/New ZealandThe Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code

- Absence in 25 g for the following:
- Butter made from unpasteurized milk or unpasteurized milk products
- Soft and semi-soft cheese
- All raw milk cheese
- Unpasteurized milk
- Packaged cooked cured/salted meat
- Packaged heat-treated meat paste and packaged heat-treated pâté
- Bivalve molluscs that have undergone processing other than depuration

## Australia/New Zealand

- Separate criterion for finfish which allows 1 sample out of 5 to have 0 – 100 cfu/g
- Follow-up actions to a finding of *L. monocytogenes* in any food depends on the level found and whether the food supports growth
- New Zealand has sector specific guidance for seafood and dairy which reinforces the FSC and requires some environmental monitoring

## European Community

- In Sept 1999, the Scientific Committee on Veterinary Measures relating to Public Health (SCVPH) issued an opinion that *L. monocytogenes* in food should be kept below a concentration of 100 cfu/g.
- Opinion was the basis for the microbiological criteria (MC) for *L. monocytogenes* established in the 2005 EC regulation on MC for foodstuffs (Commission Regulation No 2073/2005).

## European Community

- RTE foods intended for infants and RTE foods for special medical purposes
- RTE foods able to support growth
- RTE foods unable to support growth

- Absence in 25 g during shelf-life
- 100 cfu/g during shelf-life OR
- Absence in 25 g while in control of manufacturer
- 100 cfu/g during shelf-life

## Canada

- Policy issued in July 2004
- Applies to RTE foods, placed in 3 categories based on health risk
- Policy is based on a combination of inspection, environmental sampling, and end product testing

## Canada

- Category 1: soft cheese, liver pâté, unacidified jellied pork tongue, hot dogs, cold smoked rainbow trout, processed deli turkey meat
- Category 2: All other RTE foods supporting growth w/ a shelf-life > 10 days
- Category 3: RTE foods supporting growth w/ a shelf-life ≤ 10 days and all RTE foods not supporting growth

- Action Level: Detected in 50 g
- Action Level: Detected in 25 g
- Action Level: ≤ 100 cfu/g

## Codex Alimentarius

- Guidelines on the Application of General Principles of Food Hygiene to the Control of *Listeria monocytogenes* in Ready-to-Eat Foods
- Adopted by the Commission in 2007
- Contains recommendations on controlling *L. monocytogenes* during primary production, in production facilities, on equipment, during processing, transport, sanitation and personnel concerns, training, and consumer education

## Codex Alimentarius

- At present the Guidelines document has one annex on recommendations for an environmental monitoring program for *L. monocytogenes* in processing areas
*L. moncytogenes* document is available at www.codexalimentarius.net
- Another annex is still under discussion

## Codex Committee on Food Hygiene

- Draft Annex II: Microbiological Criteria for *Listeria monocytogenes* in Ready-to-Eat Foods
- Work led by Germany; US is part of the working group
- Criteria are being developed based on the information available from risk assessments

## CCFH – Draft L. monocytogenes Annex

- Currently Draft Annex defines 3 categories of foods:
- Foods for which no criteria are needed
- RTE foods in which growth will not occur
- RTE foods in which growth can occur
- Defines MC for foods in which growth will not occur and in which growth can occur

## CCFH – Draft L. monocytogenes Annex

- RTE foods in which growth of *L. monocytogenes* will not occur
- RTE foods in which growth of *L. monocytogenes* can occur

- MC = ≤ 100 cfu/g throughout the product shelf-life
- MC = < 0.04 cfu/g OR
- MC = ≤ 100 cfu/g, applicable only if manufacturer is able to demonstrate to the competent authority that the product will not exceed this limit throughout it’s shelf-life

## CCFH – Draft L. monocytogenes Annex

- Draft Annex outlines actions to be taken when a criterion is not met
- Draft Annex also describes other microbiological metrics that may be used by competent authorities
- Environmental monitoring
- Process control