Sliced (cut) and exterior (intact) surfaces of restructured cooked roast beef were inoculated with Listeria monocytogenes, treated with cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC; immersion in 500 ml of 1% solution for 1 min), individually vacuum packaged, and stored for 42 days at 0 or 4ЊC. Noninoculated samples were similarly treated, packaged, and stored to determine effects on quality (color and firmness) and on naturally occurring bacterial populations, including aerobic plate counts and lactic acid bacteria. Immediately after CPC treatment, regardless of inoculation level, L. monocytogenes populations were reduced (P ϭ 0.05) by about 2 log CFU/cm 2 on sliced surfaces and by about 4 log CFU/cm 2 on exterior surfaces. Throughout 42 days of refrigerated storage (at both 0 and 4ЊC), L. monocytogenes populations on CPC-treated samples remained lower (P ϭ 0.05) than those of nontreated samples for both surface types. After 42 days of storage at both 0 and 4ЊC, aerobic plate count and lactic acid bacteria populations of treated samples were 1 to 1.5 log CFU/cm 2 lower (P ϭ 0.05) than those of nontreated samples for both surface types. CPC treatment resulted in negligible effects (P Ͼ 0.05) on the color (L*, a*, and b* values) of exterior and sliced roast beef surfaces during storage. For both sliced and exterior surfaces, CPC-treated samples were generally less firm than nontreated samples. CPC treatment effectively reduced L. monocytogenes populations on roast beef surfaces and resulted in relatively minor impacts on color and texture attributes. CPC treatment, especially when applied to products prior to slicing, may serve as an effective antimicrobial intervention for ready-to-eat meat products.Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen of significant public health concern because of its virulence in susceptible individuals. Most cases of human listeriosis appear to be sporadic, and the source and route of infection are usually unknown. However, the association of L. monocytogenes with several large foodborne outbreaks suggests that contaminated food is the primary source of the organism, with ready-to-eat (RTE) meat products among the foods most commonly associated with food-related listeriosis (17). In the recent past, various multistate outbreaks of listeriosis that are associated with RTE meats have occurred in the United States. For example, in 2002, an outbreak of L. monocytogenes infection with 46 culture-confirmed cases, 7 deaths, and 3 stillbirths or miscarriages in eight states was linked to turkey deli meat (5). This outbreak led to a recall involving 12.4 million kg of fresh and frozen RTE turkey and chicken products.The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) classifies deli-type products that are either sliced in the establishment or likely to be sliced at retail, such as cured hams, roast beef or turkey, bologna, luncheon meat, pastrami, and other cold cuts, as high-risk products relative to L. monocytogenes contamination (18). As reported by Zaika et al. (24...