Foodborne listeriosis is a pressing problem in food production and cold storage foodstuffs storage

The production of chilled and frozen food products on an industrial basis offers broad prospects for organizing a balanced diet and improving the structure of the supply of high-quality foodstuffs. At the same time the widespread construction of wholesale and consumer markets, the development of trade functions of industrial and distribution refrigerators, vegetable depots and shopping centers require the observance of strict hygienic standards provided for by SanPiN 2.3.2.1078-01. In this document, hygienic standards for microbiological safety indicators for the first time include control of foodstuffs for the presence of Listeria monocytogenes, a pathogenic microorganism particularly dangerous for people (Listeria).
Considering the ability of Listeria to multiply in ready-to-eat food products when stored in refrigerators at low temperatures, which are traditionally used to suppress bacterial growth, the processing and food industries of various countries have to spend enormous resources to prevent production of contaminated products. The social and economic damage caused by this foodborne infection is also connected with the high mortality rate. In the United States, for example, annual damages from foodborne listeriosis range from $230 million to $313 million per year.