Happy Wednesday! It’s March 19th, 2025. We’re halfway through the week—here’s the latest in food safety.

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What to know: Health officials in the United Kingdom are investigating a fatal Listeria outbreak linked to desserts supplied to the National Health Service.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Food Standards Agency (FSA) are investigating five cases of Listeria monocytogenes. Patients were identified from May to December 2024 with two in Yorkshire and Humber and one each in the North West and West Midlands regions of England, plus one in Wales.

The FDA has launched a program, titled Operation Stork Speed, to help ensure the safety of infant formula.

The Food and Drug Administration’s action comes as Consumer Reports releases findings on heavy metals and other contaminants in infant foods.

The FDA’s program -- aspects of which are already required by law -- includes beginning a nutrient review process. The Consumer Reports findings show that some infant formula contains harmful levels of arsenic and lead.

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Consumer Reports has released details of an investigation highlighting the most contaminated poultry processing plants in the U.S., pinpointing those with persistently high levels of Salmonella contamination.

Based on data from the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the report identifies 56 plants across 22 states that have been in the agency’s Category 3 designation for at least six months.

What to know: The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland has entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Totally Cool Inc., a Maryland manufacturer of ice cream and frozen desserts at the request of the FDA.

On July 8, 2024, the Food and Drug Administration suspended Totally Cool’s food facility registration after an inspection of the firm revealed Listeria monocytogenes in the facility, as well as numerous failures of the firm to adhere to current good manufacturing practice for food safety, including sanitation requirements for employees and equipment.

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OPINION — By Laura M. Wildey Kearse

“The phrase ‘food safety culture’ is everywhere these days, but what does it mean and how can you, a front-line retail food manager, cultivate it in your workplace?”

“At its core, food safety culture is about shared values, beliefs, norms, and practices held and performed by empowered employees that behave in a way that puts food safety first — especially when no one is looking. Creating a good food safety culture means valuing food safety at the very core of everything a food company does.”

The FDA has again refused to provide information about the deadly 2024 E. coli O157 outbreak traced to romaine lettuce.

Although the Food and Drug Administration knew what grower and distributor were involved, it did not name them in its investigation summaries released in December 2024 and again earlier this year, saying the romaine lettuce was no longer on the market.