WHAT HAPPENED: FSIS on October 2 posted its Annual Sampling Program Plan for Fiscal Year 2027. The plan lists every current FSIS sampling program and the microbiological and chemical residue data the agency expects to collect over the year to guide its planning. While the plan is largely unchanged from FY 2026, there are three notable changes.
WHAT’S NEW: The most significant for the chicken industry is a new paired environmental sampling program for Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) and non-Lm Listeria species in ready-to-eat (RTE) establishments. It builds on a pilot FSIS initiated earlier this year and will begin a nationwide rollout starting in January 2027. Under the program, FSIS will collect two food contact surface samples and two non-food contact surface samples alongside the RTE post-lethality exposed product samples it already takes. The agency says the goal is to generate data verifying that establishments are effectively controlling Lm and maintaining sanitation.
The plan also makes two changes outside poultry:
- Raw pork: Starting in January 2027, FSIS will increase raw pork sampling to inform future policy and will test a broader range of pork products at higher risk for Salmonella.
- Bob veal: FSIS will collect fewer bob veal samples under the National Residue Program to reflect lower slaughter volumes in recent years and avoid unnecessary burden on smaller establishments.
WHY IT MATTERS: The Listeria program applies to RTE operations, such as plants producing fully cooked chicken products, not slaughter-only facilities. For members with RTE production, FSIS take additional swabs from food contact and non-food contact surfaces as a routine verification activity, in addition to its existing product sampling. Moving from a pilot to an ongoing program means those results will build a national dataset on Listeria control and sanitation in RTE facilities. FSIS could use that data to shape future verification and policy decisions.
WHAT’S NEXT: The expanded Listeria sampling and pork sampling both begin in January 2027. FSIS reviews its sampling data throughout the year and may adjust the plan as the fiscal year goes on. More information is available on FSIS’ sampling programs page.
