Where Is Salmonella Found? Foods, Sources and EU Data
Salmonella is found mainly in poultry, eggs and pig meat, but EU checks keep finding it in sesame, feed and fresh produce too. What the latest EFSA–ECDC data and 2,208 RASFF notifications since January 2024 show, food by food.
Where is Salmonella found? First in the gut of animals: WHO lists food animals such as poultry, pigs and cattle, and pets including cats, dogs, birds and reptiles such as turtles[1]. From there it reaches food of animal origin, mainly eggs, meat, poultry and milk, and other foods such as green vegetables contaminated by manure[1]. In the EU it is the second most reported zoonosis, with 79,703 confirmed human cases in 2024[2]. This guide sets those official figures beside 2,208 RASFF notifications from January 2024 to 17 October 2026, counted one by one, to show which foods actually get flagged and where the numbers are rising[3].
Where is Salmonella commonly found?
In the intestines of food animals and pets, and from there in anything their faeces reach: meat at slaughter, eggs in the laying house, crops through manure or irrigation water. WHO describes Salmonella as hardy. It can survive several weeks in a dry environment and several months in water, and it can pass through the entire food chain, from animal feed and primary production to households and food service[1]. EFSA and ECDC name eggs, pork and meat products as the leading food sources of salmonellosis outbreaks in the EU, and note that foods of non-animal origin can be contaminated through irrigation and washing water, manure, wild birds and other animals[2].
The serovar usually points to the source. S. Enteritidis dominates in laying hens and eggs, S. Infantis in broilers and broiler meat, and monophasic S. Typhimurium and S. Derby in pigs[2]. Across the EU, S. Enteritidis alone accounted for 58.4% of human cases acquired in the EU in 2024[2].
Which foods are flagged most for Salmonella in the EU?
Poultry meat, by a wide margin. Of the 753 Salmonella notifications validated in RASFF between 1 January and 17 October 2026, 441 concern poultry meat and poultry meat products, 59% of the total. Feed materials follow with 85, then nuts, nut products and seeds with 73, meat other than poultry with 59, and eggs and egg products with 21[3]. The order has held for three years: poultry was also first in 2024, with 356 of 744, and in 2025, with 319 of 711. This year Salmonella is behind 17.7% of all RASFF notifications, up from 13.3% in 2025[3].
A notification is not an outbreak. Of the 753 in 2026, 183 were alert notifications, 133 border rejections and the rest information notifications, and several can trace back to one source[3]. What the series shows is where EU controls keep finding the organism, which is exactly what a RASFF monitoring routine is built to catch.
Why is poultry meat the biggest Salmonella category?
Because the bird is a main reservoir and fresh poultry meat is what EU controls sample most. More than half (53.8%) of the official samples taken at manufacturing under the food safety criteria in 2024 were fresh poultry meat[2]. At slaughter, official carcase samples were Salmonella-positive for 18.7% of broilers and 17.4% of turkeys, against 3.8% for pigs. The highest contamination under the criteria was in poultry meat products intended to be eaten cooked (13.2% at manufacturing), mechanically separated meat (12.8%) and poultry minced meat and preparations (9.9%); fresh poultry meat was positive in 6.3% of samples at manufacturing and 7.7% at distribution[2].
Fresh poultry meat also carries its own legal criterion: S. Enteritidis and S. Typhimurium, including the monophasic variant, must not be detected in 25 g[4]. In RASFF, chicken is named in the subject of 279 of the 441 poultry notifications in 2026 and turkey in 39[3].
Why did Salmonella notifications rise in 2026?
The rise is almost entirely poultry. On the same 1 January to 17 October window, Salmonella notifications went from 554 in 2025 to 753 in 2026, up 36%, and poultry meat from 253 to 441; all other categories together moved from 301 to 312[3]. RASFF records findings, not causes, so the data does not say whether more sampling, one supply chain or a farm-level problem is behind it. It does show concentration by origin: Poland is listed as the origin in 190 of the 441 poultry notifications in 2026, followed by Brazil (67), Romania (59) and Ukraine (34)[3].
The farm data adds context. In 2024 only 14 Member States met all EU Salmonella reduction targets for poultry, down from 15 in 2023 and 19 in 2022. The target is 1% positive flocks for every poultry population except laying hens, where it is 2%, and the EU flock prevalence was 4.3% in broilers, 4.0% in laying hens and 7.7% in fattening turkeys[2].
A category total tells you where Salmonella was found. It does not tell you which of your raw materials is next.
The poultry figures above took a full pull of RASFF and a same-period comparison to see. iComplai screens 150,000+ sources and scores the commodity–hazard pairs that matter for the products you actually buy.
See it on your own ingredientsIs Salmonella found in dry foods like sesame, nuts and spices?
Yes, even though it cannot grow in them. Salmonella cannot multiply in low-moisture foods, but the cells can remain viable for extended periods, its infectious dose is thought to be very low, and microorganisms are more heat tolerant at reduced water activity[5]. Codex notes that most outbreak illnesses associated with low-moisture foods have been caused by Salmonella, and its hygiene code covers sesame seeds and sesame seed paste, nut butters, chocolate and cocoa, dried dairy products, spices and dried aromatic herbs[5]. FDA identifies Salmonella as the pathogen most commonly associated with illness from contaminated spices, with survival exceeding a year in low-moisture foods[6].
RASFF shows the same pattern. Sesame seeds are named in the subject of 52, 55 and 40 Salmonella notifications in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to date, and tahini in 13, 8 and 3. Nigeria is the most frequent origin in the nuts and seeds category in all three years[3].
Can animal feed and pet food carry Salmonella?
Yes, and feed is where the chain starts. The EU control regulation requires measures to detect and control Salmonella at all stages, particularly at the level of primary production, including in feed[7]. EU monitoring found Salmonella in 0.68% of feed samples and 0.76% of pet food samples in 2024[2]. Those are low rates, but feed materials are RASFF's second-largest Salmonella category: 94, 96 and 85 notifications in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to date. Animal-protein meals such as poultry, meat, feather and fish meal are named in 23, 29 and 42 of them, soybean meal in 22, 18 and 10, and rapeseed meal in 21, 15 and 11[3].
Where is Salmonella most commonly found in the world?
Wherever food animals are raised. WHO calls Salmonella one of four key global causes of diarrhoeal disease, and S. Enteritidis and S. Typhimurium the two most important serotypes transmitted from animals to humans in most parts of the world[1]. WHO's 2026 estimates put foodborne non-typhoidal Salmonella at about 23.5 million illnesses and 55,100 deaths a year (2021 data), the microbial foodborne hazard with the greatest burden[8].
RASFF cannot rank countries by how much Salmonella they have; it shows where EU checks found it. In 2026 to date the most frequent origins across all foods are Poland (205), Brazil (70), Romania (66), Germany (43) and the Netherlands (39), and for the first three most of those notifications concern poultry meat: 190 of 205, 67 of 70 and 59 of 66[3].
How soon do Salmonella symptoms start, and how long do they last?
Usually 12 to 36 hours after eating contaminated food, within a range of 6 to 72 hours, and the illness lasts 2 to 7 days[1]. WHO describes acute fever, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea and sometimes vomiting. Most cases are mild, but in children and elderly patients the dehydration can become severe and life-threatening[1]. In the EU, 43.5% of salmonellosis cases with a known status were hospitalised in 2024 (16,337 of 37,567) and 116 people died[2]. Between 60% and 80% of cases are never recognised as part of an outbreak[1], so outbreak data shows only part of the picture.
Which foods cause Salmonella outbreaks in Europe?
Eggs, above all. EFSA and ECDC name Salmonella in eggs and egg products as the agent and food pair of most concern in 2024. Salmonella caused 1,238 foodborne outbreaks that year, up from 1,115 in 2023 and 18.9% of all outbreaks reported in the EU, and it was linked to the most outbreak hospitalisations (1,823)[2]. Among strong-evidence outbreaks the vehicles were eggs and egg products (83), mixed food (36), bakery products (23, of which 14 contained raw cream or raw eggs), broiler meat (19), pig meat (16) and vegetables and juices (16)[2].
Recent multi-country assessments reach well beyond animal foods: sprouted seeds, with 509 cases in nine countries between 2023 and early 2025[9]; small tomatoes from Sicily, linked to S. Strathcona with 437 cases by September 2025[10] and more than 800 by September 2026 after a summer recurrence[11]; alfalfa sprouts in 2026[12]; and flavoured instant noodles, with 106 cases between November 2025 and June 2026[13].
How do food businesses control Salmonella?
The law sets two layers. Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 requires national control programmes with EU reduction targets for poultry flocks[7]. Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 sets the criteria a product must meet during its shelf-life, “not detected in 25 g” for foods such as minced meat eaten raw, egg products, ready-to-eat sprouted seeds and precut fruit and vegetables, and 10 g for mechanically separated meat and minced meat of species other than poultry intended to be eaten cooked. It makes the operator responsible for meeting them through HACCP-based procedures and good hygiene practice at every stage, retail included[14].
In the kitchen, WHO's five keys apply: keep clean, separate raw and cooked, cook thoroughly, keep food at safe temperatures, and use safe water and raw materials[15]. For cooking, the FDA Food Code sets 74 °C (165 °F) for poultry[16]; the UK Food Standards Agency advises that the centre of the food reaches 70 °C for 2 minutes[17].
For buyers the gap is upstream. A criterion tells you whether a lot passed; it does not tell you that a commodity or an origin is drawing more findings this year than last. That comparison, the one behind the poultry figures above, belongs in every supplier audit and in the horizon scanning that feeds it.
Salmonella FAQ
Where is Salmonella most commonly found?
In the intestines of food animals, mainly poultry, pigs and cattle, and in pets and reptiles. In food it is found most often in poultry meat, eggs and pig meat. Between 1 January and 17 October 2026, 441 of the 753 Salmonella notifications in the EU's RASFF system concerned poultry meat.
Can Salmonella be found in vegetables and dry foods?
Yes. Vegetables can be contaminated by manure or irrigation water, and EU outbreak investigations have traced Salmonella to sprouted seeds and tomatoes. Dry foods such as sesame, nuts, spices and chocolate do not let it grow, but it survives in them for long periods; FDA reports survival of more than a year in spices.
How long can Salmonella survive outside the body?
WHO says it can survive several weeks in a dry environment and several months in water. In low-moisture foods such as spices, FDA reports survival for more than a year.
What temperature should chicken be cooked to?
The FDA Food Code sets 74 °C (165 °F) for poultry. The UK Food Standards Agency advises that the centre of the food reaches 70 °C for 2 minutes, or an equivalent combination such as 75 °C for 30 seconds. Use a thermometer; colour is not a reliable guide.
Is Salmonella increasing in Europe?
Human cases rose slightly: the EU notification rate was 18.6 per 100,000 in 2024, 1.7% above 2023, and EFSA and ECDC report a significant increase over 2020 to 2024. RASFF notifications for Salmonella between 1 January and 17 October 2026 were 36% above the same period of 2025, driven by poultry meat.
Know which raw materials are drawing findings before the next audit.
See Salmonella and other hazard notifications scored for your own ingredients and origins, in a 30-minute walkthrough.
Talk to iComplaiWhere these claims come from
[1] WHO. Salmonella (non-typhoidal), fact sheet, 20 February 2018. who.int
[2] EFSA and ECDC. The European Union One Health 2024 Zoonoses Report. EFSA Journal 2025;23(12):e9759, published 9 December 2025. ecdc.europa.eu
[3] European Commission, RASFF Window. Salmonella notifications by Commission validation date, 1 January 2024 to 17 October 2026, counted record by record by iComplai on 18 October 2026 (hazard field or subject naming Salmonella: 744, 711 and 753). The public search filters on the subject only and shows 743 for 2026. webgate.ec.europa.eu
[4] Commission Regulation (EU) No 1086/2011 on Salmonella in fresh poultry meat (row 1.28 of Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005). eur-lex.europa.eu
[5] Codex Alimentarius (FAO/WHO). Code of Hygienic Practice for Low-Moisture Foods, CXC 75-2015. fao.org
[6] FDA. Risk Profile: Pathogens and Filth in Spices, 2017. fda.gov
[7] Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 on the control of salmonella and other specified food-borne zoonotic agents, consolidated version of 21 April 2021. eur-lex.europa.eu
[8] WHO estimates of the global, regional, and national burden of 42 foodborne infectious and chemical hazards, 2000–21. The Lancet Global Health, first published 3 June 2026. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
[9] ECDC and EFSA. Prolonged cross-border multi-serovar Salmonella outbreak linked to consumption of sprouted seeds, 6 March 2025. ecdc.europa.eu
[10] ECDC and EFSA. Prolonged multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Strathcona ST2559 linked to consumption of tomatoes – first update, 23 October 2025. ecdc.europa.eu
[11] ECDC. Communicable Disease Threats Report, week 41, 3–9 October 2026. ecdc.europa.eu
[12] ECDC and EFSA. Multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Bovismorbificans ST377 infections linked to the consumption of alfalfa sprouted seeds, 25 June 2026. ecdc.europa.eu
[13] ECDC and EFSA. Multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Stanley ST2045 infections linked to consumption of flavoured noodle products, 1 July 2026. ecdc.europa.eu
[14] Commission Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs, consolidated version of 1 July 2026. eur-lex.europa.eu
[15] WHO. Five keys to safer food. who.int
[16] FDA. Food Code 2026, released 17 September 2026, §3-401.11. fda.gov
[17] Food Standards Agency. Cooking your food. gov.uk
RASFF counts: every notification validated in the period was pulled from the public RASFF Window backend and filtered for Salmonella in the hazard field or the subject; product types are keyword matches on the subject. Method and raw records are kept by iComplai.