Austrian Salmonella outbreak linked to poultry products

More than 30 people have been sickened in a Salmonella outbreak in Austria.

The Ministry of Health asked the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) to investigate the outbreak with help from local authorities.

AGES reported that 35 people have become ill with a specific strain of Salmonella since December 2024. Ten people had to be treated in hospitals.

The outbreak strain is Salmonella Enteritidis with sequence type (ST) 11 and complex type (CT) 14117.

Sick people live in six federal states: Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, and Vienna.

Patients are 17 women and 18 men, with a median age of 24 and a range from 1 to 83 years old.

Positive test results from food and veterinary samples at poultry farms suggest the source of infection may be eggs, egg products, or chicken meat but an exact source has not yet been found.

AGES said it is especially important during warmer months to pay attention to kitchen hygiene during the preparation of animal-based foods to prevent infections.

Austrian officials are still investigating another Salmonella outbreak.

Salmonella Infantis infections were likely caused by an organic cashew butter with raspberries sold at dm drogerie markt locations.

Thirteen cases have been reported and eight children had to be hospitalized. The majority of patients are children aged between 1 and 3 but they range from less than1 to 69 years old.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in Germany also identified 85 Salmonella Infantis infections largely among infants and young children. In total, 84 cases are children up to 4 years old and one patient is a 30-year-old woman. Overall, 35 children had to be hospitalized.

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