The number of people sickened in an outbreak of Salmonella in Norway involving alfalfa sprouts has doubled to almost 50.
In an update provided by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), the patient count rose by 26 to 49. This includes 42 infected with Salmonella Newport and seven with Salmonella Typhimurium.
Illness onset dates started in mid-October. Patients range in age from 7 to 87, with a median of 46 years old, and 35 are women. A total of 24 people have been hospitalized. Bacteria with a similar genetic profile have been detected in patients, which suggests a common source of infection.
FHI is investigating the incident with Mattilsynet (The Norwegian Food Safety Authority), the Veterinary Institute, and local authorities.
“It is not unexpected that we discover more infected people after the product has been withdrawn from the market, and the suspicion of organic alfalfa sprouts as the source of the outbreak has been strengthened,” said Umaer Naseer from FHI.
“The reason is that it takes time from sampling those who have become ill to the final results from the laboratory. In the coming weeks, we will likely discover more infected people who belong to the outbreak.”
Positive Salmonella results
Several patients reported eating alfalfa sprouts before getting ill. FHI has also examined the diets of those who have become ill and compared them with those who have not been sick. Results show that those who are ill have eaten sprouts to a greater extent than those who are not.
The Norwegian Veterinary Institute has detected Salmonella Newport in sprouts and in the production environment at a sprout producer. Samples were taken as part of the national outbreak investigation. Sprouts are grown in conditions that help Salmonella bacteria thrive and multiply.
It has not yet been confirmed if the type detected is identical to the strain found in patients.
“Although alfalfa sprouts contain many healthy substances, they are also risky. Since sprouts are often used in small quantities in salads and as a garnish for other foods, the infection can be spread over many items even from a small amount of sprouts,” said senior researcher Taran Skjerdal, from the Veterinary Institute.
The sprout producer’s measures include stopping the use of the contaminated seed lot in question and using seeds from another supplier.
Norske Spirer has recalled and withdrawn products containing organic alfalfa sprouts from the market. The best-before dates range from Nov. 27 to Dec. 11, 2024. The items were sold in grocery stores across the country, such as Rema 1000, Coop, Kiwi, Meny, Bunnpris, Joker, and Spar.
Swedish connection
Salmonella Typhimurium has also been detected in an outbreak in Sweden, where the suspected source of infection is organic alfalfa sprouts. Norway and Sweden received seeds for alfalfa sprouts from the same European distributor.
There was a recall in Sweden as authorities investigated the outbreak linked to sprouts.
Folkhälsomyndigheten (the Public Health Agency of Sweden) said 92 people from 18 regions had been infected with one of 12 genetically closely related Salmonella Typhimurium sequence type (ST) 36 variants.
Authorities connected illness to the consumption of alfalfa sprouts from a certain seed batch. SydGrönt and Munkagrodden issued a recall and stopped germination from the seed lot. The products’ best-before dates were Nov. 24 to Dec. 3.
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