ABSTRACT As part of a European research project (FOOD-PCR), we developed a standardized and robust PCR detection assay specific for the three most frequently reported food-borne pathogenic Campylobacter species, C. jejuni , C. coli , and C. lari . Fifteen published and unpublished PCR primers targeting the 16S rRNA gene were tested in all possible pairwise combinations, as well as two published primers targeting the 23S rRNA gene. A panel of 150 strains including target and nontarget strains was used in an in-house validation. Only one primer pair, OT1559 plus 18-1, was found to be selective. The inclusivity and exclusivity were 100 and 97%, respectively. In an attempt to find a thermostable DNA polymerase more resistant than Taq to PCR inhibitors present in chicken samples, three DNA polymerases were evaluated. The DNA polymerase T th was not inhibited at a concentration of 2% (vol/vol) chicken carcass rinse, unlike both Taq DNA polymerase and DyNAzyme. Based on these results, T th was selected as the most suitable enzyme for the assay. The standardized PCR test described shows potential for use in large-scale screening programs for food-borne Campylobacter species under the assay conditions specified.