What is Listeria?

Listeria is a foodborne bacteria which can make you sick. Infection with listeria bacteria is called listeriosis. In healthy adults and children listeria usually causes few or no symptoms, but some vulnerable people with a low immunity are more at risk of severe illness.

What kinds of food pose the most risk?

Food that poses the most risk are:

Uncooked, smoked or ready-to-eat fish or seafood, including oysters, prawns, smoked ready-to-eat fish, sashimi or sushi paté, hummus-based dips and spreads cold pre-cooked chicken ham and all other chilled pre-cooked meat products including chicken, salami and other fermented or dried sausages* pre-prepared or stored salads (including fruit salads) and coleslaws raw (unpasteurised) milk and any food that contains unpasteurised milk* soft-serve ice creams soft, semi-soft or surface-ripened soft cheese (eg, brie, camembert, feta, ricotta, roquefort)*

*Note that the foods on this list are safe to eat if heated thoroughly to steaming hot (ie, above 72°C) where appropriate

Source: Ministry of Health 

What are the scientific facts about Listeria?

 MPI Guidelines For Ready-To-Eat (RTE) Food Manufacture 

 Codex Alimentarius Guidelines For Food Manufacture

Hepatitis A and managing the risk to Food Safety  

What causes Hepatitis A?

The Hepatitis A virus (HAV) causes hepatitis A.

Hepatitis A is a severe food and waterborne disease that is primarily transmitted by the faecal-oral route. In simple terms a food handler with bad personal hygiene, cross-contaminates the food.

What kinds of food pose the most risk?

Food that poses the most risk are:

Contaminated bivalve shellfish, salads, fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen fruit, water and any manually prepared or ready-to-eat food products where a food handler with bad personal hygiene cross contaminated the food. HAV has been known to survive in crème-filled cookies for >1 day at 21ºC.

Poor hygiene practices and poor sanitation are major risk factors. Presymptomatic foodhandlers excreting HAV pose a risk.

In general, food is rarely available for analysis because of the long incubation period. 

What are the scientific facts about Hepatitis A?

 Codex Alimentarius Guidelines For Hepatitis A Virus (HAV) in Food Manufacture 

All Food Safe's Basic and Advanced Food Safety Training programmes include training on pathogens including bacteria such as Listeria and viruses, how to control, monitor the safety of food and record this. Our trainees understand why this is important and get practice in class actually filling out helpful verification records towards these goals.

所有的食品安全的基础食品安全 培训项目包括在新的食品控制计划和日记，如何监督食品安全，并记录了此次培训。作为一名实习生，你就会明白，为什么这些都是重要的并得到实践类实际上填补了这些记录。

Eager to minimise the risk with best practice food safety training?

Give us a ring on 0800 003 097 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will show you how you too can benefit from our highly rated training programmes.