Where can Listeria monocytogenes be found?
Listeria monocytogenes can be found in many natural environments, including soil, water, vegetation, sewage and farm environments. It can also be found in food manufacturing environments, in foods and in food preparation environments. In food processing environments, contamination of foods can occur after they are processed (such as cooking) but before they are packaged, and also when the products are handled in shops (eg, on slicing machines, delicatessen counters), in the home and in catering establishments. Minimising risk Listeria monocytogenes is destroyed by normal cooking processes (eg, reaching at least 70 °C at the centre of the food for 2 minutes), but can survive and grow at refrigeration temperatures. It is this characteristic of being able to multiply at low temperatures that enables Listeria to grow to levels that are high enough to cause infection. Since many ready-to-eat foods are stored in the refrigerator before consumption and are not cooked before eating, they can b
