TABLE 5.
Number of EC strains in various food categories
| Food categorya | No. of isolates (% among total isolates screened for category): |
Total no. of isolates screened | |
|---|---|---|---|
| With EC strainsb | Without EC strains | ||
| Bag salads | 2 (9.5) | 19 (90.5) | 21 |
| Cheeses | 2 (6.25) | 30 (93.75) | 32 |
| Smoked seafood | 6 (5.9)* | 96 (94.1) | 102 |
| Deli and seafood salads | 48 (17.4)** | 228 (82.6) | 276 |
| Deli meats | 10 (14.9) | 57 (85.1) | 67 |
| Unknown food source | 0 (0) | 4 (100) | 4 |
| Total | 68 (13.5) | 434 (86.5) | 502 |
a
Select RTE food categories that represent the 31,707 L. monocytogenes samples collected in the retail food survey. For statistical analysis purposes, the four isolates of unknown origin were left out of the isolate set.
b
Asterisks indicate significant (*, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01) nonuniform distribution of EC strains among L. monocytogenes isolates within food product categories.