Most HACCP plans in Ireland exist to stop three pathogens reaching a customer plate: Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes and E. coli (specifically O157). They are the names behind the headlines, the recalls and the closures. This article explains how each one behaves and exactly which HACCP controls keep them down.
Salmonella
Where it lives: raw poultry, raw eggs, unpasteurised dairy, undercooked meat.
What it does: 6 to 72-hour incubation; diarrhoea, fever, abdominal cramps lasting up to 7 days.
Growth range: 7-49°C, optimum 35-37°C.
Kill step: 75°C for 30 seconds at the core.
HACCP controls: raw/cooked separation, 75°C cook, 5°C cold storage, hand-wash SOP, supplier specs for eggs (Lion or equivalent assurance scheme).
Listeria monocytogenes
Where it lives: ready-to-eat meats, smoked salmon, soft cheeses, prepared salads, cooked-and-cooled foods, the cold environment itself.
What it does: 1-90-day incubation; mild symptoms in healthy adults, life-threatening listeriosis in pregnant women, the elderly and the immunocompromised.
Growth range: -1.5 to 45°C - it grows in your fridge, slowly.
Kill step: 70°C for 2 minutes at the core.
HACCP controls: aggressive cooling (60-10°C in under 2 hours), short shelf-life on ready-to-eat foods, fridge below 5°C, dedicated equipment for ready-to-eat product, swabbing of contact surfaces and floor drains, careful use-by date enforcement.
E. coli O157
Where it lives: raw beef and lamb, unpasteurised dairy, contaminated leafy greens, unwashed root vegetables.
What it does: 3 to 8-day incubation; severe bloody diarrhoea; can progress to haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), especially in children.
Growth range: 7-44°C.
Kill step: 70°C for 2 minutes for whole-cut beef; 70°C for 2 minutes for minced products such as burgers.
HACCP controls: strict raw-meat segregation, dedicated red boards and knives, two-stage clean of all contact surfaces, soaking and washing of leafy greens, pasteurised dairy only, cooking burgers thoroughly to the core.
Common controls that hit all three
- Hand washing every transition - raw to cooked, after waste, after bathroom.
- Colour-coded boards and utensils.
- Fridge below 5°C, monitored twice daily, calibrated weekly.
- Cook-once-only rule for high-risk dishes.
- Two-stage cleaning of every contact surface.
- Pest control - rodents are vectors for Salmonella and E. coli.
What an FSAI investigation looks like after an outbreak
If your premises is linked to a confirmed case, the EHO will request your HACCP plan, monitoring records for the previous 30 days, supplier specifications, swab samples from contact surfaces, and the names of every food handler who worked the suspected shift. Defensible records turn investigations into rapid closures; missing records turn them into prosecutions.
Train the pathogens into the team
Every credible HACCP Course teaches food handlers to name the three pathogens, where they live, and the control that stops them. A team that can answer "what temperature kills E. coli?" without hesitation is a team that runs a defensible system. New starters can hit that level inside one short online HACCP course.
