Health officials in Belgium reported that at least 300 people have fallen ill following a Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak traced to a domestic poultry farm. The contamination, which originated at producer Laerco BV, has led to mass egg recalls in Belgium and eight other European nations.
The outbreak was first identified by regulators in May, when the bacterial strain was detected in a single barn. Belgian food safety authorities confirmed this month that the bacteria spread to a second poultry house after being identified in a dust sample collected from a chicken coop. The Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) has since closed and isolated the entire facility.
Infected individuals range in age from infants under one year old to a 96-year-old. Reported symptoms include fever, vomiting, and dehydration, which have required hospital care for several patients. Belgian authorities noted that because whole genome sequencing takes several weeks to complete in laboratories, the official count of 300 cases is likely an underestimate of the total infection rate.
A person purchasing these products would notice no difference in the smell, taste, or appearance of the eggs, making the specific producer codes the only reliable way to identify contaminated food. The recall covers products with shelf-life dates extending through September 4, meaning households may still have these items in their kitchens. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is monitoring the situation closely, as the 207 cases in Britain—primarily in London and Yorkshire—have been linked to imported eggs, though the specific country of origin for the UK cluster has not yet been confirmed.
The incident has activated the European Union’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, a cross-border mechanism designed to manage food safety risks across the single market. This sets a precedent for how quickly contamination can spread through integrated supply chains, moving from a single barn in Belgium to retail shelves in eight other nations. What happens next depends on the results of ongoing whole genome sequencing in Belgian labs, which will determine the final tally of infections. Consumers should monitor local health agency updates for further recall dates beyond the current September 4 deadline.