Listeria

^New View presentation slides and webinar recording from July 3, 2013, Interagency Retail Lm Risk Assessment Briefing.


What is Listeria (Listeriosis)?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Listeriosis is a serious infection usually caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). Lm is ubiquitous, and thrives in environments that could be perceived as clean, i.e. cold, wet spaces.

What can consumers do to protect themselves from Lm?
The FDA and CDC recommend consumers take the following actions to prevent an infection from Listeria:

 

• Follow FDA directions for safe washing and handling food. Find consumer resources on safe food handling at The Partnership for Food Safety Education.
• Keep your kitchen and environment cleaner and safer.
• Cook meat and poultry thoroughly.
• Store foods safely.
• Choose safer foods (i.e.: avoiding unpastuerized products).

Who is most at risk for Listeria?
The CDC outlines the following groups that are at increased risk:

• Pregnant women: Pregnant women are about 13 times more likely than the general population to get listeriosis. About one in six (17%) cases of listeriosis occurs during pregnancy.
• Newborn babies: Newborn babies suffer the most serious effects of infection in pregnancy.
• Persons with weakened immune systems from transplants or certain diseases, therapies, or medications.
• Persons with cancer, diabetes, alcoholism, liver or kidney disease.
• Persons with AIDS: They are almost 300 times more likely to get listeriosis than people with normal immune systems.
• Older adults
• Healthy children and adults occasionally get infected with Listeria, but they rarely become seriously ill. 

FMI Resources

FMI Listeria Action Plan for Retail Delis, November 2012

Webinar by FMI's VP of Food Safety Hilary Thesmar on the Listeria Action Plan, February 2013

Guidance for the Control of Listeria monocytogenes Risks in Retail Food Stores, 2008