EU authority investigating – Salmonella chocolate: products also in Austria

“The UK, France, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands and Ireland are affected. Certain products have also been delivered to Austria. The responsible authorities have been informed and are currently taking appropriate action. The Ministry of Health and AGES are in contact with the European food safety authorities,” the AGES website said on Wednesday afternoon.

Ferrero recalls surprise eggs
On Tuesday it was announced that confectionery manufacturer Ferrero had to recall its surprise eggs just before Easter. Some batches of chocolate vouchers were also affected. According to Ferrero, all items were made in Belgium.

EU authorities investigating
Two EU authorities are now also working on the salmonella outbreak. The EU food safety authority EFSA and the EU health authority ECDC have launched an investigation into the outbreak. So far, 105 confirmed cases and 29 suspected cases have surfaced, most of them in children under the age of 10, EFSA and ECDC said Wednesday.

According to the information, nearly half of all infections reported so far have been in Britain, where the first case was discovered on January 7. Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden are also affected. The outbreak is characterized by an unusually high percentage of children requiring hospitalization, some with severe symptoms such as bloody diarrhea, the EFSA and ECDC also said. Certain chocolate products have been identified as a likely route of infection.