# Presentation: 895546

## Current Listeria Policy

**Current **_**Listeria**_*** *****Policy**
**And**
**Risk Management Questions**

- Daniel Engeljohn, Ph.D.
- Office of Policy, Program and Employee Development
- Food Safety and Inspection Service
- U. S. Department of Agriculture

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

##  Risk Management

*** ******Risk Management***
- Risk management*:
-  A process
-  of weighing policy alternatives,
-  in consultation with all interested parties,
-  considering risk assessment and other factors relevant for:
-  the health protection of consumers,
-  promotion of fair trade practices, and
-  selecting appropriate prevention and option  controls, if needed
-  Distinct from risk assessment
- CODEX

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

**Notes:**
Principles and Guidelines for the Conduct of Microbiological Risk Management, CX/FH 01/7, July 2001

##  Risk Management

*** ******Risk Management***
- Risk managers:
-  Are the primary users of risk assessment outputs
-  Formulate the food safety issue or problem, questions, objectives, and goals
-  Provide the risk assessors with the questions to be answered

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

##  Risk Management

*** ******Risk Management***
- Risk Issues:
-  Need to strengthen the scientific information and the analytical data serving as the foundation of policy – in the form of a regulation – for control of _Listeria monocytogenes_ (section IX – Scientific Information and Data Needs, 66 FR, 12609, February 27, 2001)

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

##  Risk Management

*** ******Risk Management***
**2001 proposed rule:  Performance Standards for the Production of Processed Meat and Poultry Products** (66 FR 12590, February 27, 2001)
-  Control -- _Listeria monocytogenes_* *either in:
-  **HACCP plan** -- food safety hazard reasonably likely to occur after lethality treatment, before final packaging; **or**
-  **Sanitation SOP** -- testing food contact surfaces after lethality treatment, before final packaging, for _Listeria spp_*.* at a specified frequency (i.e., 4-2-1)
-  Testing -- to verify that Sanitation SOPs are effective
-  Results – available for review by FSIS
-  Positives -- corrective actions/procedures (e.g., _Listeria monocytogenes_* *testing of product)

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

**Notes:**
Frequency of testing based on plant size:
Large (500 or more employees) – at least 4 tests/line of RTE/month
Small (10-499 employees) – at least 2 tests/line of RTE/month
Very Small (fewer than 10 employees or annual sales of RTE less than $2.5 million) – at least 1 test/line of RTE/month

Verify effectiveness of Sanitation SOPs at preventing direct product contamination or adulteration

Corrective action
Procedures to determine which lot or lots of product might have been affected
Procedures to hold, sample, and test that product for Listeria monocytogenes, and
Procedures to dispose of affected product

## Risk Management Questions

*** ******Risk Management***
- How effective are various food contact surface testing and sanitation regimes on mitigating _Listeria monocytogenes_* *contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death?

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

## Risk Management Questions

*** ******Risk Management***
*How effective are various food contact surface testing and sanitation regimes on mitigating *_*Listeria monocytogenes*_* contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death?*
- How effective are other interventions (e.g., pre- and post-packaging interventions or the use of growth inhibitors) in mitigating _Listeria monocytogenes_* *contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death?

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

##  Risk Management Questions

*** ******Risk Management***
- _ __Risk Management Questions_
*How effective are various food contact surface testing and sanitation regimes on mitigating *_*Listeria monocytogenes*_* contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death?*
*How effective are other interventions (e.g., pre- and post-packaging interventions or the use of growth inhibitors) in mitigating *_*Listeria monocytogenes*_* contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death? *
- What guidance can be provided on testing and sanitization of food contact surfaces for _Listeria_* *species (e.g., the confidence of detecting a positive lot of ready-to-eat product given a positive food contact surface test result)?

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

##  Risk Management Questions

*** ******Risk Management***
- _ __Risk Management Questions_
*How effective are various food contact surface testing and sanitation regimes on mitigating *_*Listeria monocytogenes*_* contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death?*
*How effective are other interventions (e.g., pre- and post-packaging interventions or the use of growth inhibitors) in mitigating *_*Listeria monocytogenes*_* contamination in finished ready-to-eat product, and reducing the subsequent risk of illness or death? *
*What guidance can be provided on testing and sanitization of food contact surfaces for *_*Listeria*_* species (e.g., the confidence of detecting a positive lot of ready-to-eat product given a positive food contact surface test result)? *
- *None of the questions relate to non-food contact surfaces* *

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003

## Contact Information

_**Contact Information**_

***DANIEL L. ENGELJOHN**** *
- Acting Assistant Deputy Administrator
- Office of Policy, Program and Employee Development
- Food Safety and Inspection Service
- United States Department of Agriculture
- 300 12th St., S.W., Rm. #402, Washington, DC  20250-3700
- Office:	202-205-0495
- Fax:  	202-401-1760
- E-mail: 	daniel.engeljohn@fsis.usda.gov
- _Web-based Meat, Poultry, and Egg Policy Documents_
**http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/publications.htm**

- Risk Assessment Technical Meeting  Washington, DC -- February 2003