One person has died and 207 others have fallen ill in an ongoing salmonella outbreak across the United Kingdom that health officials believe is linked to eggs brought in from overseas. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says the cases were recorded between 11 August 2025 and 1 August 2026, with the vast majority — 206 of the 207 — reported during 2026, and most identified since the middle of last month. Investigators say the outbreak has now been formally declared a national incident, with evidence pointing to catering and food service settings such as restaurants and cafes, rather than home cooking, as a likely route of exposure, according to a national broadcaster's report.
More than a third of those infected have required hospital treatment, including infants and people as old as 90, with those affected ranging from under one year old to 90, and two patients developed serious blood poisoning as a complication. Of the cases where information is available, 38% were admitted to hospital, according to the UK Health Security Agency. Most people recover without medical intervention, but officials say the outbreak is notable because it involves a single, genetically identical strain of the bacteria rather than the usual mix of unrelated cases seen throughout the year. The UKHSA has said it cannot release details about the person who died or the circumstances of their death because the case remains the subject of a continuing investigation.
What is salmonella and how do people catch it?
Salmonella is a family of bacteria that typically lives harmlessly in the digestive tract of animals including cattle, pigs and chickens, which is why eggs and poultry are commonly associated with the infection. The bacteria are shed in animal faeces, and people generally become infected by eating contaminated food that has not been cooked properly, coming into contact with infected animals, or through cross-contamination when raw and cooked food are mixed in the kitchen.
What are the symptoms and who is affected?
Those infected typically experience stomach cramps, diarrhoea, vomiting or fever, with symptoms usually appearing between 12 and 72 hours after exposure. Older people, babies and people with weakened immune systems are at greatest risk of severe disease, and hospital care involving fluids and, in some cases, antibiotics can help in these instances. The UKHSA advises anyone concerned about symptoms to contact their GP or an out-of-hours service in the first instance.
England accounts for 199 of the 207 confirmed cases, with London recording 47 and Yorkshire and Humber recording 38, figures also confirmed by a national broadcaster. The remaining cases have been spread across the rest of the UK, with six in Scotland and one each in Wales and Northern Ireland. Whole-genome sequencing has confirmed that all cases sit within the same five-single-nucleotide-polymorphism single-linkage cluster, meaning the infections are genetically indistinguishable and almost certainly trace back to a common source, according to the UK Health Security Agency. The strain has been identified as Salmonella Enteritidis, and officials say egg consumption remains the strongest signal identified in the investigation so far, according to the same UKHSA report.
Is this linked to travel or a previous outbreak?
According to the UK Health Security Agency, investigators have ruled out international travel as a significant factor, since only six of the 207 people affected reported travelling outside the UK before falling ill. The agency also says genomic evidence links the current cluster to a separate outbreak recorded in 2025 that was similarly traced to imported eggs, suggesting a recurring contamination issue in part of the supply chain rather than an isolated incident. According to the UKHSA's report published on 18 August 2026, the two outbreaks are phylogenetically linked within 25 single-nucleotide polymorphisms, a level of genetic similarity officials say points to a shared source further back in the supply chain, according to the UKHSA. The agency is also working with other European countries through a joint system of health-threat surveillance to help identify how the outbreak began.
What has the investigation found so far?
Hannah Charles, lead epidemiologist for gastrointestinal infections at the UKHSA, said the agency is working alongside other bodies to trace the source.
"We're working with Food Standards Agency and other public health agencies to investigate a salmonella outbreak that may be linked to eggs imported from outside of the UK."
Charles also explained the nature of the illness and how people can protect themselves. "Salmonellosis is often caused by eating or handling contaminated food and can be spread rarely from person to person. Salmonella generally causes a mild illness, although vulnerable groups with weakened immune systems may experience more severe illness," she said, adding that symptoms include diarrhoea, stomach cramps and sometimes vomiting and fever, and that anyone concerned should contact their GP or an out-of-hours service.
"Wash your hands thoroughly after using the bathroom and before preparing and handling food, cook food thoroughly, and if you have any symptoms, avoid handling food for others where possible."
Salmonella can be carried in raw or undercooked poultry, meat and eggs, and thorough cooking along with careful hand hygiene when handling food or using the bathroom can reduce the risk of infection. Thousands of salmonella cases occur in the UK every year across many different strains, but an outbreak driven by one specific strain affecting a large number of people simultaneously is considered unusual.
Food chain investigations have found that the premises linked to cases were supplied with eggs from multiple sources, including importers, according to the UKHSA's health protection report. Local investigators have also identified possible cross-contamination risks at two of the settings connected to the outbreak. Interviews conducted with 114 of those who fell ill identified five food businesses where two or more independent cases reported attending in the week prior to symptom onset; those businesses, which have not been named, together link 24 of the confirmed cases, with 11 of those people reporting they had eaten dishes containing eggs. The UKHSA has stated its current position plainly.
"At this time there is no identified link to UK-produced eggs or poultry."
Which eggs are considered safest to buy?
Jacquelyn McCormick, head of incidents at the Food Standards Agency, says the standard food safety advice has not changed: eggs that are thoroughly cooked and hygienically handled should not pose a risk. She said infants, young children, pregnant women and older adults should only eat runny or raw eggs if they carry the British Lion mark or are produced under the Laid in Britain egg assurance scheme, while people who are immunocompromised should follow their doctor's advice. Dr Kathleen O'Reilly of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has also recommended that diners check food hygiene ratings when choosing cafes or restaurants.
Has this happened before and how are British eggs regulated?
Imported eggs have been linked to UK food safety incidents in recent years, and government reporting notes that egg imports have been rising, alongside several past episodes tied to imported products, according to a Food Standards Agency update. In an earlier case, investigators traced an indistinguishable Salmonella Enteritidis PT 14b strain to a small number of eggs originating from a specific shed in Spain, demonstrating how detailed supply-chain tracing can pinpoint a single source of contamination, as reported by a farming industry publication.
The vaccination of commercial hens against common salmonella strains, which began in the mid-1990s in the UK, has been described as a "major public health success" that has "substantially reduced egg-associated salmonella infections," according to Dr Charlotte Hammer of the University of Cambridge. A further quality control measure, the British Lion Scheme, launched in 1998, requires suppliers carrying the mark to follow a strict code covering hen vaccination and a passport system that makes hens traceable. Paul Wigley, professor in animal microbial ecosystems at the Bristol Veterinary School, said improved surveillance and detection has also helped control the disease domestically, but cautioned that imported eggs and egg products may not benefit from the same level of control. "We do still import a large number of eggs and egg product, and salmonella could be contained within these because the countries in which they're produced don't use that same level of control," he said. Mark Williams, chairman of the British Egg Industry Council, said food businesses that import eggs should check their supply lines for vaccination information and confirm that all necessary food safety checks have been carried out.
What don't we know yet?
Health experts still need to confirm that eggs are definitively the source of the outbreak before tracking exactly where the implicated eggs or egg products originated. One complicating factor is that when a business imports large volumes of eggs, supplies can come from mixed sources, making it harder to isolate a single point of contamination. Because outbreaks tied to a single food source and affecting hundreds of people are relatively unusual, scientists are also expected to examine the broader factors that allowed this outbreak to develop.
What happens next?
The UKHSA says its epidemiological and food chain investigations remain ongoing as of 18 August 2026, with officials continuing to treat egg consumption as the strongest lead identified so far, according to the agency's report. The UKHSA has also alerted other countries to the outbreak through international surveillance networks so they can check for genetically similar infections. Further preventative measures will be introduced if investigators confirm a specific source, though the agency maintains that the risk to the wider public remains low at this stage.
Key Facts
- 207 confirmed cases recorded between 11 August 2025 and 1 August 2026, with 206 reported in 2026 alone.
- 199 of the cases are in England, including 47 in London and 38 in Yorkshire and Humber; six are in Scotland and one each in Wales and Northern Ireland.
- 38% of cases with available information required hospital care; two developed serious blood poisoning, and ages range from under one to 90.
- Only 6 of the 207 cases involved recent international travel, ruling out travel as a major factor; evidence points instead to catering and food service settings.
- Genomic testing links the outbreak within 25 SNPs to a similar 2025 outbreak also tied to imported eggs.
