USDA's FSIS to Expand Listeria Surface Swabbing at Ready-to-Eat Meat Plants Nationwide in 2027
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will expand nationwide a program adding environmental sampling for Listeria at ready-to-eat (RTE) meat establishments, with a phased rollout across all nine FSIS districts from January through March 2027. Under the program, inspectors collecting routine RTE product samples will also take four environmental swabs — two from food-contact surfaces and two from non-food-contact surfaces — each analyzed for Listeria monocytogenes and other Listeria species; if L. monocytogenes is found, FSIS will perform whole genome sequencing and compare results with reported illnesses and past findings.
Environmental sampling was previously done mostly by specialized FSIS personnel at irregular intervals; the pilot ran in the Alameda, Chicago, and Raleigh districts. The expansion is part of a series of FSIS changes following the deadly 2024 Listeria outbreak traced to Boar's Head deli meat. "Broader sampling and more data ultimately means safer food," FSIS said. The program applies to FSIS-inspected plants making products such as deli meats and hot dogs, not to grocery store deli counters. (GSM, based on the FSIS fiscal 2027 sampling plan and Food Safety News reporting)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：超市熟食柜台的肉类与奶酪（资料照片）。照片：DPLA，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。File photo: Meat and cheese at a grocery store delicatessen. Photo: DPLA, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
