Listeria

How it is used

A major concern in ready-to-eat foods such as soft cheeses, smoked fish, cooked meats and prepared salads, because it can grow at refrigerator temperatures. Factories run environmental monitoring programs, swabbing drains and floors for Listeria. People often say just 'Listeria' when they mean L. monocytogenes.

Example sentences

1. Listeria was found in a floor drain, so we increased cleaning and swabbing in that area.

2. Unlike most pathogens, Listeria keeps growing slowly in the fridge.

Common collocations

• Listeria monocytogenes
• environmental monitoring
• ready-to-eat foods
• Listeria control
• Listeria swab

Related terms

• pathogenA microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus or parasite, that can cause disease in people who eat or drink a contaminated product.
• refrigerationKeeping food at low temperatures above freezing, usually 0–5 °C, to slow down microbial growth and chemical changes.
• foodborne illnessAny illness caused by eating or drinking food or water contaminated with harmful microorganisms, their toxins, chemicals or parasites.
• sanitationThe cleaning and sanitizing of equipment, surfaces and the whole plant so that dirt, food residues and microorganisms are removed or reduced to safe levels.
• SalmonellaA group of bacteria that cause salmonellosis, a common foodborne illness, often linked to raw or undercooked poultry, eggs and meat, and to some fresh produce.

More terms: Food Microbiology

• spoilage
• microorganism
• bacteria
• mold
• yeast
• Clostridium botulinum
• total plate count