Over 60s need better advice to combat more virulent listeria

The Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food (ACMSF) suggested the increase, which outstrips the rate of population growth among over 60s, could be also associated with improved case recognition, increased susceptibility to infection with listeria, and higher levels of exposure.

It recommends further research into the food consumption patterns of the over 60s, and communicating general food safety to vulnerable groups.

HACCP principles well-established​

However, its Report on the Increased Incidence of Listeriosis in the UK also concluded that the principles of food safety management and hazard analysis approaches such as HACCP are well established in the food industry, and pointed to evidence which suggests that the incidence and levels of L. monocytogenes at the points of production and sale are not greater than those recorded in the late 1980s.

The report said: “Provided that producers of chilled, ready-to-eat food are operating to current recognised industry standards, disciplines will be in place in large manufacturing plants to segregate products and people between the ‘raw’ or ‘low risk’ side of the factory from the ‘ready-to-eat’ or high risk’ side.”​

Recommendations​

It recommended that future advice to the industry should stress the importance of temperature and shelf life control, hygiene and cleaning, and formulation of foods.

The Committee repeated its advice that the UK’s Food Standards Authority (FSA) should work with the food industry to ensure that formulations, including salt levels, are not changed without taking into account the impact on microbiological safety.

Over 60s​

ACMSF submitted the report at the request of the FSA following reports of an increase in cases of listeria, predominantly in the over-60s age group, in the UK as well in other European countries including France and Germany. Earlier this year the FSA revealed that the number of cases of listeria in the UK rose by 20% in 2007 and has doubled since 2000, with older people the most affected.

The FSA is concerned that less than half of this age group recognise ‘use by’ dates as an important indicator of whether food is safe, with 40 percent of elderly people saying they would eat dairy products up to three days past their ‘use by’ date.

The report found 'use by' dates on some perishable foods sold loose was “variable,” ​with one survey in the North West of England suggesting such information to be more common on sliced, cooked meats from supermarkets (74%) than market stalls (6%); delicatessens (8%) or butchers (7%). “It is recommended that the FSA reviews the need for consistent advice on such products,”​ it said, and pointed out that poor eyesight among the elderly should be taken onto account when printing information.