Safety assessment of the maximum permitted levels of L. monocytogenes in food according to health risk criteria

The data obtained by a comparative risk assessment of listeriosis occurrence due to the consumption of food containing L. monocytogenes at levels which do not exceed the standards adopted by the Custom Union of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia (CU) and those set by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and the European Union for food placed on the market is presented in this work. It was determined that exposure to the levels meeting the CU standards (the absence of L. monocytogenes in a 25g sample of a food product) caused a health risk which did not exceed the acceptable risk level. The adoption of Codex Alimentarius Commission and EU standards (100 CFU/g for products placed on the market) may result in unacceptable risk levels for both the Russian population in general and the most susceptible individuals.