In recent years, the U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has launched many new initiatives designed to combat pathogens in processed meat products. FSIS usually attempts to achieve its goals by announcing it will begin or increase the testing of raw materials (i.e., raw beef trimmings) or finished products (i.e., raw ground beef) for pathogens of concern. FSIS has also carefully staged each of its initiatives, addressing a lineage of pathogens in chronological order, beginning with E. coli O157:H7, moving to Non-O157:H7 STECs, and most recently announcing new initiatives aimed at Salmonella.
For many years, FSIS has also required facilities that process Ready-To-Eat (RTE) products to develop and follow Listeria control programs. In light of the recent flurry of new agency initiatives, however, the natural questions become: (1) to what extent will FSIS begin placing additional requirements on processors to control Listeria in the environment; and (2) if so, what will those new requirements look like? I believe FSIS in the future will follow the lead of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and begin to embrace zero-tolerance standards for Listeria anywhere in the post-lethality RTE processing environment.