Plant-derived antimicrobial agents have adequate antimicrobial effects on food-borne pathogens, which can be used as food preservatives. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial mechanism of chlorogenic acid (CA) against and . The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of CA was determined by employing the broth microdilution method. Then, the cell function and morphological changes of and treated with CA were characterized. Finally, the growth inhibition models of . in raw pork and in skim milk were constructed through the response surface methodology. The results demonstrated that CA has a satisfactory inhibitory effect against and with a MIC of 2.5 mg/mL. In addition, CA inhibited the growth of and via cell membrane damage, such as depolarization of the cell membrane, reduction in intracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and pH levels, and destruction of cell morphology. Moreover, CA reduced two log cycles of in raw pork and in skim milk at a certain temperature. According to the corresponding findings, CA has the potential to be developed as an effective preservative to control and -associated foodborne diseases.