New Industry Guidance Published on Managing Listeria in RTE Foods
16 Jan 2026
New industry‑led guidance on managing Listeria monocytogenes in ready‑to‑eat (RTE) foods has been published by the Chilled Food Association (CFA), with support from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS). FPC is pleased to have contributed to the development of this important resource.
The guidance provides practical advice for food businesses and enforcement officers, including decision trees, updated microbiological criteria, shelf‑life determination approaches, environmental monitoring guidance, and worked case studies.
The document can be downloaded here:
FSA and FSS have publicly welcomed the guidance and are signposting it to local authorities. Further regulatory context and recent amendments to EU and NI requirements applying from 1 July 2026 can be found on the FSA website: