Salmonella Enteritidis
Salmonella serovar that is a leading cause of egg-linked food poisoning.
Salmonella Enteritidis, one of the two Salmonella serotypes WHO ranks most important, lies behind three UK clusters linked to imported eggs: 586 confirmed cases and two deaths to 15 September 2026, UKHSA said.
Last refreshed: 4 October 2026
Timeline for Salmonella Enteritidis
Mentioned in: 207 salmonella cases point at eggs
Pandemics and BiosecurityBackground
UKHSA is tracking three Salmonella Enteritidis clusters in the UK, with 586 confirmed cases and two deaths to 15 September 2026, linked to imported eggs. The largest, strain t5.9411, had 355 cases; the others, t0.24068 and t5.9765, had 189 and 42. UKHSA says UK-produced eggs are not linked to the clusters.
The t5.9411 cluster stood at 207 cases on 13 August, when 95 of 114 people interviewed had eaten food prepared outside the home. That route is hard to trace, because caterers buy eggs from wholesalers WHO buy from several packers.
WHO names Enteritidis as one of the two most important Salmonella serotypes passed from animals to humans worldwide, out of more than 2,500 identified. It usually causes gastroenteritis 12 to 36 hours after eating contaminated food, most often eggs, meat, poultry or milk.
One Enteritidis strain drove UK cases
UKHSA had tied 207 Salmonella Enteritidis cases to one five-marker genomic cluster by 13 August 2026, the strain tracked as t5.9411. Most interviewed patients had eaten food prepared outside the home, which pointed investigators at caterers and their wholesalers.
By 15 September t5.9411 had reached 355 cases, the largest of three UK clusters with 586 confirmed cases and two deaths linked to imported eggs. ECDC's 21 August report gave 123 cases in its detailed section and 126 in its executive summary, and left the gap unexplained.