Farm-to-fork microbial safety of fresh leafy green vegetables: Navigating the gap between experimental interventions...

The increasing global consumption of minimally processed leafy greens has frequently positioned them as vehicles for foodborne pathogens, imposing a heavy economic burden on healthcare systems. Although farm-to-fork transmission pathways have been documented extensively, a critical translational bottleneck persists between idealized experimental interventions and constrained industrial scale-up. This review consolidates current evidence to evaluate this divergence. By appraising microbial hazards and safety control measures systematically, this study highlights specific scale-up failure mechanisms - notably endophytic pathogen internalization, biofilm maturation, and the induction of viable but non-culturable (VBNC) states - that limit the efficacy of industry-standard chemical sanitization. Frameworks are outlined to refine current deterministic risk assessments by incorporating stochastic models and physiological stress adaptations to better capture real-world processing dynamics. To bridge the gap between benchtop science and commercial realities, the fresh produce industry should transition from reactive compliance to proactive management. This synthesis proposes actionable modernization, including the adoption of green hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) frameworks, advanced viability-based molecular diagnostics, and interoperable genomic surveillance to mitigate systemic farm-to-fork hazards proactively. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.