Salmonella Stanley ST2045
A specific Salmonella sequence type behind a 10-country EU foodborne cluster of 83 cases, with chicken products suspected.
Last refreshed: 9 June 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Which chicken product is driving Salmonella across ten European countries at once?
Timeline for Salmonella Stanley ST2045
Salmonella cluster crosses ten EU borders
Pandemics and Biosecurity- What foods are linked to the 2026 EU Salmonella Stanley outbreak?
- ECDC suspects chicken-flavoured instant noodles or processed chicken products sharing a common ingredient. The Rapid Outbreak Assessment due 1 July 2026 will identify the specific product once the supply-chain trace is complete.Source: ECDC CDTR Week 23
- Why is the 2026 Salmonella Stanley outbreak spreading across so many EU countries?
- The 83 cases in 10 countries point to a single distributed food supply chain rather than separate contamination events. Genomic MLST typing confirmed all isolates cluster with a Danish reference strain, meaning one product or ingredient is distributed across all 10 affected states.Source: ECDC CDTR Week 23
- How serious is Salmonella Stanley ST2045 illness?
- Salmonella infection typically causes self-limiting gastroenteritis. All current EU cluster cases are in the standard surveillance picture with no reported deaths. Severe outcomes are more likely in young children, elderly patients, and the immunocompromised.Source: ECDC CDTR Week 23
- When will there be a recall for the Salmonella Stanley chicken noodle outbreak?
- ECDC and EFSA's joint Rapid Outbreak Assessment is due 1 July 2026. A product recall would follow once the assessment identifies the specific contaminated ingredient or product line.Source: ECDC CDTR Week 23
Background
ECDC is tracking a cluster of 83 cases of Salmonella Stanley ST2045 across 10 EU countries since late December 2025, with the cluster still active as of the Week 23 report (30 May to 5 June 2026). Children and young adults are disproportionately represented among cases. The suspected vehicle is chicken-flavoured instant noodles or processed chicken products sharing a common ingredient, pointing to a single supply chain across borders rather than ten separate contamination events. A joint ECDC and EFSA Rapid Outbreak Assessment is due 1 July 2026.
Salmonella Stanley ST2045 is a multi-locus sequence type (MLST) designation identifying a genetically distinct strain of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Stanley. MLST typing resolves below-serovar diversity, allowing epidemiologists to distinguish genuine outbreak clusters from background incidental cases of the same serovar. ST2045 is the variant linked to a Danish reference strain against which the 10-country isolates have been clustered. Salmonella infection typically causes self-limiting gastroenteritis; severe outcomes are more likely in young children, elderly patients, and the immunocompromised.
The ten countries with confirmed clustering isolates include Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. The geographic spread across member states confirms a distributed food supply origin, not localised kitchen contamination. Instant noodles and convenience chicken products are the suspect vehicle because the affected age profile (children and young adults) aligns with frequent consumption of those product categories. The EFSA and ECDC assessments due in July will name the specific product or ingredient once the supply-chain trace is complete.