Risk assessment of Listeria monocytogenes in foods: part 1: formal models: meeting report

Overview

In response to a request from the 52nd Session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) convened a meeting, with the objective of developing formal full risk assessment models for Listeria monocytogenes in lettuce, cantaloupe, frozen vegetables and ready-to-eat fish.

In light of the available data and the current risk assessment approaches, the expert group aimed to collectively ascertain the stages from primary production to consumption to be represented in the model, including approaches that accommodate the testing of scenarios, interventions and sampling schemes that could reduce the risk of listeriosis.

This report describes the output of this expert meeting and the advice herein is useful for both risk assessors and risk managers, at national and international levels and those in the food industry working to control the hazard in foods.