The UK-based Chilled Food Association (CFA) has produced an industry-led good practice guidance for manufacturers and retailers of ready-to-eat (RTE) foods that may support the growth of Listeria monocytogenes. The guidance is intended to help food business operators (FBOs) comply with UK and EU regulations on the microbiological criteria for foods.

Regulation (EU) 2073/2005 on the microbiological criteria for foods was recently revised by the European Commission (Regulation [EU] 2024/2895) to expand the requirements for FBOs regarding L. monocytogenes in RTE foods. Per the amended regulation, FBOs must ensure that L. monocytogenes will not exceed detectable levels in 25 grams (g) of a RTE product throughout its entire shelf-life, as opposed to the current requirement in which FBOs are not responsible for the growth of L. monocytogenes after a food has left its immediate control. This change comes into force in the EU and Northern Ireland on July 1, 2026.

Regulation (EU) 2073/2005 was assimilated into UK law prior to the amendment to the Listeria criteria, and still applies in England, Wales, and Scotland.

Developed in direct response to industry questions and concerns about EU/UK regulations on the microbiological criteria for food, the guidance comprises practical resources and case studies, presented in an easily accessible format. It includes:

• A decision tree to determine applicability of the guidance
• Tables summarizing microbiological criteria and the amended Listeria criteria
• Requirements for the safe manufacture of RTE foods
• A checklist for purchasing RTE ingredients
• Environmental monitoring program design and usage
• Detailed approaches to establishing and justifying shelf-life (i.e., physicochemical data, scientific and historical data, experimental studies
• Usage and limitations of predictive modeling, durability, and challenge testing
• Worked shelf-life examples (e.g., cheese and sandwich scenarios)
• Worked examples showing usage and limitations of predictive modeling
• Example historical data types to be collated by FBOs in support of food safety assurance and shelf-life
• A Q&A addressing common operational questions and enforcement scenarios.

The CFA guidance, which was promoted by the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) as resource for industry, can be downloaded for free here.

The European Commission also recently published a revised guidance document on monitoring and shelf-life studies for L. monocytogenes in RTE foods, reflecting amendments made to the Listeria criteria.