CAC/GL 61-2007 Guidelines on the Application of General Principles of Food Hygiene to the Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat Foods
INTRODUCTION
Listeria (L.) monocytogenes is a Gram-positive bacterium that occurs widely in both agricultural (soil, vegetation, silage, faecal material, sewage, water), aquacultural, and food processing environments.L. monocytogenes is a transitory resident of the intestinal tract in humans, with 2 to 10% of the general population being carriers of the microorganism without any apparent health consequences.1 In comparison to other non-spore forming, foodborne pathogenic bacteria (e.g., Salmonella spp., enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli), L. monocytogenes is resistant to various environmental conditions such as high salt or acidity. L. monocytogenes grows at low oxygen conditions and refrigeration temperatures, and survives for long periods in the environment, on foods, in the processing plant, and in the household refrigerator. Although frequently present in raw foods of both plant and animal origin, sporadic cases or outbreaks of listeriosis are generally associated with ready-to-eat, refrigerated foods, and often involves the postprocessing recontamination of cooked foods.
