Recent nationwide outbreaks and product recalls due to food contaminated with bacterial pathogens have generated increased attention to food safety among food manufacturers, retail customers, regulatory agencies, and in the U.S. Congress. As a result, increasing the level of microbiological testing during food production has been discussed as a potential means to improve food safety. The ability of microbiological testing to detect the presence of a bacterial pathogen in a food or ingredient is dependent, among other factors, on the level of contamination and the sampling plan employed. Given that bacterial pathogens are present in most food products and ingredients at very low levels, even aggressive sampling plans cannot always provide a high degree of confidence that microbiological testing will detect a pathogen, if present. For this reason, microbiological testing of finished product alone cannot be used to ensure food safety. When microbiological testing of a finished product is employed, additional challenges around lot segregation and product control must be considered. This seminar will review current microbiological testing in the food production and discuss its role, limitations, and challenges.