Levels in seafood: There are few data describing the prevalence of L. monocytogenes in Australian seafood of which a number are not ready-to-eat and will receive a heat treatment prior to consumption, therefore inactivating the organism (Table 4.3). Garland (1995) and Garland and Mellefont (1996) isolated L. monocytogenes from only 3/718 smoked salmon samples at a Tasmanian plant. These levels are much lower than those reported for smoked salmon in Europe (M&S Food Consultants 2001). By contrast, the prevalence established in a retail survey in New South Wales during 1993 (Arnold & Coble 1995) is much higher than those determined at the processing plant by Garland and Mellefont, pointing to temperature/time regimes favourable for the growth of the pathogen. Also of concern is the high prevalence of L. monocytogenes (29.5–60%) in processed smoked salmon products (Arnold & Coble 1995; Garland & Mellefont 1996).
