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Ranking of low-moisture foods in support of microbiological risk management: Meeting report and systematic review

Year of publication 2022

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 308 p.

Author FAO, WHO

Publisher FAO ; WHO ;

Product type Book (series)

ISBN 978-92-5-136559-5

Series title Microbiological Risk Assessment Series

Series number No 26

Synopsis (short abstract) Low-moisture foods (LMF) are foods that are naturally low in moisture or are produced from higher moisture foods through drying or dehydration processes. These foods typically have a long shelf life and have been perceived for many years to not represent microbiological food safety risk hazards. However, in recent years, a number of outbreaks of foodborne illnesses linked to LMF has illustrated that despite the fact that microorganisms cannot grow in these products, bacteria do have the possibility to persist for long periods of time in these matrices. Responding to a request from the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) implemented a series of activities aimed at collating and analysing the available information on microbiological hazards related to LMF and ranking the foods of greatest concern from a microbiological food safety perspective. Seven categories of LMF which were ultimately included in the ranking process, and the output of the risk ranking, in descending order was as follows: cereals and grains; dried protein products; spices and dried herbs; nuts and nut products; confections and snacks; dried fruits and vegetables; and seeds for consumption.

Cite this content as:

FAO and WHO. 2022. Ranking of low moisture foods in support of microbiological risk management: meeting report and systematic review. Microbiological Risk Assessment Series No. 26. Rome.

https://doi.org/10.4060/cc0763en

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Language English

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