Revision of guidance for reducing the risk of vulnerable groups contracting listeriosis
Applies to England, Northern Ireland and Wales
Consultation description
Purpose of the consultation
To seek stakeholder views in England, Northern Ireland and Wales on the clarity of the updates made to the revised guidance, and on our assessment of the impact of this revision.
In particular, we would welcome stakeholder views on whether:
- the guidance provides sufficient information to aid compliance with the law
- best practice advice in the guidance is clearly distinguished from legal requirements
- the guidance is clear and easy to follow
- our assessment of the impact of the updates is sufficient
This consultation will be of most interest to:
- all types of health and social care organisations that provide food to vulnerable groups in England, Northern Ireland and Wales
- retailers, caterers and manufacturers who supply food to and within health and social care organisations
- Environmental Health Practitioners, local authorities and district councils
Food Standards Scotland (FSS) is the independent authority responsible for food and feed safety in Scotland and has its own version of this guidance. FSS will consider any changes to this guidance separately as part of their own review.
Details of this consultation
The Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) reducing the risk of vulnerable groups contracting listeriosis guidance has been updated. Find the revised guidance at the bottom of this page. The current version of the guidance is also available to view (PDF).
The updates were based on findings derived from the survey of health and social care setting food businesses on implementation of the FSA listeriosis guidance and feedback from Local Authorities and District Councils.
The guidance does not change existing policy. The main changes, which are listed in the revision history section of the guidance, include (but are not limited to):
- updates to the format to improve accessibility
- updates to legislative references and link addresses throughout the document
- clarifies legal obligations for food businesses operating within health and social care settings
- a new section included on registration of food businesses operating within care settings
- a new section included on incidents within care settings
- updates to the Listeria risky foods list
- review and amendment of best practice boxes where necessary
- inclusion of an additional resource list
- other minor wording amendments
We would welcome views from stakeholders on the changes to the guidance. In particular, whether you agree that the revised guidance is an improvement on the current published version and whether the revised guidance delivers the improvements outlined above.
Impacts
The revised version includes editorial changes and additions to ensure the guidance fully reflects the legislative requirements across England, Northern Ireland and Wales at the time of consultation.
There is no change to policy or science, as the Independent Review of NHS Hospital Food deemed it was fit for purpose.
Updates made are intended to improve clarity and strengthen understanding of how best practice should be applied in health and social care settings to reduce the risk of vulnerable groups contracting listeriosis.
Findings derived from the survey of health and social care setting food businesses on implementation of the FSA listeriosis guidance and from local authorities and district councils identified several key areas for improvement. These included:
- the need to raise awareness of the guidance
- provide more comprehensive information regarding the registration of such settings
- establish a clearer differentiation between statutory legal requirements and recommended best practice standards
These findings were systematically considered throughout the revision process, to address previously identified gaps and areas of ambiguity highlighted by relevant stakeholders.
The FSA has assessed that the changes to the guidance present a relatively short familiarisation period to the intended users of the guidance.
The clarification provided in this updated guidance is expected to benefit users by improving clarity and conciseness, while the incorporation of updated legislation enhances its overall applicability.
How to respond
Use our consultation response form to provide your comments.
If you are unable to submit your response using the online form, then you can submit your response by emailing Food.Policy.Wales@food.gov.uk. Use the same questions from the form in your response, and include:
- whether you are responding as a private individual or on behalf of an organisation/company
- the nation in which you are based
Responses
Responses are required by 11.59pm 16 December 2026.
The FSA consultation privacy notice has information about how the FSA handles your personal data.
Further information
If you require a more accessible format of this document, send details to Food.Policy.Wales@food.gov.uk and your request will be considered.
This consultation has been prepared in accordance with HM Government consultation principles.
In Scotland this guidance is promoted by Food Standards Scotland.
Please note that the Welsh-language version of this guidance will be updated after the consultation. When responding, please refer to the English versions.
Thank you on behalf of the Food Standards Agency for participating in this public consultation.