The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO) Joint Expert Meetings on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) convened in Rome, Italy from February 6–10, 2023 to review the most recent scientific literature regarding the control of thermotolerant Campylobacter species C. jejuni and C. coli in broiler production and in chicken meat. A summary of the meeting’s findings were recently published. In general, JEMRA recommended a multi-hurdle approach suitable to the production and processing stages to lower Campylobactercontamination of chicken meat.
The meeting was held in response to a request from the 52nd Session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH) to inform possible revisions to Codex Alimentarius Guidelines for the Control of Campylobacter and Salmonella in Chicken Meat (CXG 78-2011). To address the same request, another meeting was convened regarding the control of Salmonella, for which a summary was published in January 2024. The scope of the more recent meeting on Campylobacter was focused on aspects of broiler primary production, from the point of chick placement, into production establishments, to consumer handling. JEMRA reviewed the available data on Campylobacter control, including scientific literature published from 2008–October 2022 and data submitted in response to a call for data for the meeting.