Microbial hazards in food ready to eat

Growing awareness and a growing cult of healthy lifestyles have led to increased consumer interest in comfort foods. Consumers expect food producers to be convenient, easy to prepare, with the right nutritional value and appropriate sensory qualities. The term "convenient food" comes from the English expression "convenient food" and means a group of food products that, as a result of proper processing, make it possible to quickly and easily prepare them for consumption. 

Comfort foods include foods that are suitable for consumption after a short and easy preparation. These are products that are ready for direct consumption or require little culinary processing, portioned and packaged with care for maximum consumer comfort. This food group includes both highly processed foods (such as instant soups) and minimally processed foods (such as salads and salads). Comfort foods are divided into subgroups of products (according to their readiness for use):

• Ready to Process-products ready for pre-processing;
• Ready to Kitchen-ready-to-cook products;
• Ready to Cook-products ready for heat treatment;
• Ready to Heat-ready-to-heat products;
• Ready To Eat-ready-to-eat products. 

An increase in women's professional activity, an increase in the number of households consisting of one and two people, a lack of time for self-cooking at home, and an increase in food consumption outside the home lead to a dynamic growth of the comfort food market. Especially the consumption of salads and salads. These products are based on fresh raw materials (sprouts, fresh vegetables and fruits) and are recognized by consumers as safe and healthy, and their consumption increases from year to year. 

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Microbiological risks in ready-to-eat products

According to the definition of the International Commission on Microbiological Requirements for Food (ICMSF), these are unacceptable pollutants, the growth or survival of microbes in food that can lead to its spoilage or the production and preservation of toxins, enzymes, biogenic amines or their metabolic products.

Monitoring the microbiological quality of ready-to-eat foods, especially those that are not subjected to heat treatment (for example, salads and salads), is extremely important. It provides information about the hygiene of the production and distribution process, as well as potential technological violations. When consuming ready-to-eat foods (such as salads and vegetable snacks), the risk of microbiological contamination is high. The presence of certain microorganisms can cause poisoning, food infections, and in extreme cases leads to death. For many years, the main cause of food poisoning was considered to be bacteria of the genus: Salmonella, Clostridium, Staphylococus, Eschericha and Pseudomonas. Currently, of particular interest are new pathogenic agents, which include bacteria of the genus m.in. Listeria monocytogenes. The source of microbiological contamination of ready-to-eat food can be: soil, insects, animals, and pollutants that occur during production and storage. 

Listeria monocytogenes

Source of bacteria  Listeria monocytogenes ready-to-eat products most often use cheeses made from unpasteurized milk, meat and its canned goods, as well as vegetables and salads consisting of raw vegetables. Lettuce, spinach, cauliflower, kale, celery and broccoli, as well as all salads and salads packed in a modified atmosphere, are considered particularly vulnerable to contamination by this pathogen. Many scientific studies have reported the occurrence of Listeria monocytogenes in salads and salads. Especially those that had cheese or meat in them. 

Straws Listeria monocytoegenes They were first described by Murray in 1926. The first reported cases of food-borne listeriosis were reported in Canada in 1981. 7 adults and 34 children were infected. The source of infection was cabbage used for making cabbage salad. Currently, more than 99% of listeriosis cases in humans are caused by eating contaminated food. In the first half of 2023, the number of reported cases of listeriosis was 75. In 2022, 29 cases of the disease were identified. The mortality rate from infections is 30%. 

 Listeria monocytogenes it crosses the protective barriers of the human body: blood-brain, intestinal, placental barrier. The first signs of infection appear 24-48 hours after the penetration of bacteria. Initial symptoms of infection include headache and joint pain and diarrhea. There is drowsiness and general weakness. When more bacteria are ingested, acute gastroenteritis occurs. Symptoms usually go away on their own, but people at high risk (pregnant women, the elderly, infants, people who have had a transplant or cancer) develop listeriosis, which can have a different course. As a result of listeriosis, bacteremia, meningitis, endocarditis, conjunctivitis, and skin infection can develop. Listeriosis is especially dangerous for pregnant women. This can cause infection of the fetus, lead to miscarriage, stillbirth. 

Due to the high threat and high mortality associated with bacterial infection L. monocytogenes listeriosis is subject to mandatory registration-in accordance with the law of December 5, 2008 on the prevention and control of infections and infectious diseases in humans. In the European Union, information on contaminated food can be quickly shared thanks to the Hazardous Food and Feed Early Warning System (RASFF). – Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed ). 

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How to prevent listeriosis?

First of all, you should monitor the storage temperature of ready-to-eat food-it should not exceed 4 °C. products should be purchased from a trusted supplier. Pregnant women should not consume unpasteurized milk, products that are stored in the refrigerator for a long time, cold meat dishes, raw fish and seafood. It is necessary to maintain cleanliness-wash your hands before cooking and wash your hands before eating, keep the cooking areas clean. Do not store raw food together with cooked / ready-to-eat foods.