Finnish health authorities have declared a major salmonella outbreak over.
More than 100 people have been sickened in 11 countries as part of a multinational outbreak linked to alfalfa seed from India.
This spring, Salmonella Bovismorbificans disease was discovered in Finland. The cluster included 64 people suspected of being domestically infected. Of these, 37 cases were confirmed to be caused by the same strain. Most cases were discovered between March and May, with a single case occurring in June.
Patients live in different regions of Finland. The age of onset ranges from 4 to 86 years, the average age is 43 years, and 41 of them are women. 10 people were hospitalized. Two people died within 30 days of the infection being discovered. Both cases had underlying conditions, and one was receiving terminal treatment.
Most of the cases interviewed reported eating uncooked bean sprouts before becoming ill. The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and Ruokavirasto (Finnish Food Agency) investigated the outbreak with the help of county and municipal medical and environmental health authorities.
According to Ruokavirasto, the bean sprouts suspected to be the source of infection are no longer on the market.
Impact on Europe
From 2023 to 2025, 700 to 800 cases of Salmonella infection will be reported to the National Infectious Diseases Register each year. In 2025, 712 infections were reported, including four cases of Salmonella Bovismorbificans. So far this year, 380 salmonella infections have been recorded.
People were also sick in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Spain, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) said in June that alfalfa sprouts and other sprouted seeds were the main food vector in the multinational outbreak. According to the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) alert, the suspected sources were alfalfa seeds, clover seeds, broccoli seeds and radish seeds from Italy.
Epidemiological evidence has identified sprouted alfalfa seeds from Italy as the main vector of infection. Microbiological evidence included detection of the outbreak strain in water samples collected during harvest of sprouting alfalfa seeds in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
Traceability operations in Italy represent a common seed supplier in India. The outbreak strain is thought to have been introduced to Europe in October 2025 through two consignments of alfalfa seed before being distributed to several countries.
