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WHO assessed the overall public health risk as “moderate,” citing the vulnerability of infants, uncertainty around the extent of contamination, and gaps in surveillance and traceability.

The agency has published a summary of foodborne illness outbreak investigations involving USDA-regulated products in Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, alongside an after-action review of a fatal listeriosis outbreak linked to Yu Shang-brand ready-to-eat (RTE) meats that was solved in 2024.

Ready-to-eat (RTE) pâté en croute contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes and produced by Drôme Ardèche Tradition has sickened 12 people across France, resulting in two deaths. All patients were hospitalized.

The Infant Formula Safety Modernization Act includes provisions about expanded pathogen testing requirements and compulsory environmental monitoring for infant formula manufacturers, among other mandates.

In processing operations for dairy and low-moisture foods, specialized sanitation and environmental monitoring programs are paramount to securing food safety and hygienic operation of facilities. 

However, concerning levels of arsenic and lead were detected in some products, and Consumer Reports is therefore urging FDA to set limits for these metals in infant formula. PFAS were also found in more than a quarter of products.

FDA has declared the outbreak over with 48 confirmed and probable cases of illness. A root-cause investigation is still ongoing. FDA has also announced new “Operation Stork Speed” infant formula resources for families.

The STEC O26:H11 outbreak sickened 40 people and resulted in 19 cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) in children. Dried fruit was the probable vehicle of illness. Researchers underlined the importance of a weight-of-evidence approach in the outbreak investigation.

Amid the ongoing global infant formula recall due to possible cereulide contamination, some countries have reported cases of mostly mild gastrointestinal illness in infants who had consumed infant formula, but confirming cereulide exposure is a challenge.

This episode of Food Safety Five discusses updated USDA-FSIS guidance on Listeria testing in RTE facilities, the latest on the Boar’s Head facility behind the fatal outbreak of 2024, and a real-world Listeria “Seek and Destroy” success story.