Occurrence and Distribution of Listeria Species in Some Egyptian Foods

The present study was carried out to determine the prevalence of L. monocytogenes and other Listeria species in food products. A total of 233 food samples (51 raw milk, 51 kareish cheese, 31 butter, 50 burger and 50 luncheon) were randomly collected from retail markets and grocery stores in Beni-Suef governorates, Egypt. Twenty-seven samples (11.59%) were positive for Listeria spp. The most contaminated food products with Listeria species was raw milk (27.45%) followed by kareish cheese (13.73%), burger (8 %) and butter (6.45%). All examined luncheon samples were Listeria free. The most recovered species was Listeria innocua (22.22%); The remaining isolates were L. ivanovii (18.52%), L. seeligeri (18.52%), L. grayi (14.815%) L. welshimeri (14.815%) and L. monocytogenes (11.11%). The results indicate that there is a potential risk of infection with Listeria, therfore strict preventive measure should be adopted to ensure Listeria free foods.