Proposal of performance objectives and sampling schemes for Listeria monocytogenes in fresh meat intended to be eaten cooked under different storage practices

The goal of this study was to define a practical approach to derive risk management measures, such as performance objectives (POs), for Listeria monocytogenes in pork cuts intended to be eaten cooked. Moreover, sampling plans to verify the compliance of meat lots to such POs are presented. The POs were estimated as prevalence and/or concentration values that should not be exceeded at time of consumption. To derive possible POs for L. monocytogenes, ten lots of pork cuts, collected within the same slaughterhouse along a one-year period, were tested for the presence and concentration of the pathogen under four different scenarios through the product shelf life. Our results indicated that the median values of the prevalence distributions ranged between 0.41 and 0.68. The number of samples to be tested in order to verify lot compliance ranged between six, for samples tested immediately after packaging, and three, for samples tested at the end of the shelf life. The concentration values ranged between 2.02 log10 CFU/g, for samples tested immediately after packaging, up to 3.14 log10 CFU/g for samples tested after final storage at 14 °C. The concentration of L. monocytogenes in the samples contaminated by less than 10 CFU/g was estimated between 7 CFU/10 g to 7 CFU/g, after storage at retail and abuse temperature, respectively. Basing on the knowledge of log normal distributions, the maximum contamination level of the lots in order to achieve the suggested POs, was calculated. It was obtained that mean concentration estimated as PO should be between − 0.43 and 0.48 log10 CFU/g. Other risk management options are further evaluated and discussed. These results would help food operators and authorities to establish safety targets and corrective actions regarding inhibition of L. monocytogenes in fresh pork meat.