FSIS RELEASES REVISED SALMONELLA AND LISTERIA COMPLIANCE GUIDELINES

FSIS has released revised Salmonella and Listeria Compliance Guidelines for small and very small producers of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products.  FSIS Salmonella Compliance Guidelines for Small and Very Small Meat and Poultry Establishments that Produce Ready-to-Eat (RTE) Products, released on Wednesday, September 19, includes more options for achieving lethality in RTE meat and poultry products and provides guidance for the processing and safe handling of RTE products after the lethality step to prevent contamination with pathogens including Salmonella or Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). FSIS has also added an appendix to the document.

FSIS Compliance Guidelines: Controlling Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) in Post-lethality Exposed Ready-to-Eat (RTE) Meat and Poultry Products, announced in FSIS Notice 59-12 on Friday, September 14, provides specific recommendations that establishments producing post-lethality exposed RTE meat and poultry products may follow to meet the requirements of 9 CFR part 430. This notice informs inspection program personnel (IPP) that a revised FSIS Compliance Guideline: Controlling Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) in is available. This notice also informs Enforcement, Investigations, and Analysis Officers (EIAOs) that they are to review the information in the compliance guideline as part of their preparation for conducting food safety assessments (FSAs) in establishments that produce post-lethality exposed RTE products, as described in FSIS Directive 5100.1, page 9.

The agency stated that these guidelines are recommendations rather than regulatory requirements and are revised as new information becomes available.