§ Mr. GregoryTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action his Department is taking to deal with the problem of listeria in food.
§ Mr. MacGregorMy Department is jointly responsible with the Department of Health for regulations under the Food Act. The Department of Health has already issued a statement on 12 January 1989 on the evidence available to it from routine monitoring of human cases of listeriosis.
As part of our continuing review of the impact of new technology on the safety of food, MAFF has in hand work which we have commissioned on the cooking conditions required to kill listeria monocyctogenes in poultry meat. A major study, jointly funded by industry, on physical aspects of microwave cooking is also under way.
I can assure my hon. Friend that as soon as the appropriate scientific information is available from these studies, we will immediately consider with the Department 158W of Health what further action is required if any is revealed to be necessary. We shall also take into account evidence from other outside studies.
Meanwhile my Department, together with the Department of Health, and industry representatives, is considering current food processing, distribution, retailing and labelling of cooked and chilled ready-to-eat products to ensure that safety margins are satisfactory.