EU: Salmonellosis outbreaks linked to sesame-based foods imported from Syria

Five European countries (Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden) have reported salmonellosis infections related to the consumption of sesame-based products such as tahini and halva imported from Syria. Over the past two years - EFSA announced that it has launched an alert - 121 people have been affected by the bacterium: almost half of the cases concern children ≤10 years of age, which also represent more than half of hospitalized cases. No deaths were reported. Based on available epidemiological, microbiological and traceability information, the likely vehicles of infection are sesame-based products imported from Syria, at least in the countries involved in the traceability of positive batches. These products are sealed and ready to be consumed, which suggests that the contamination occurred before the products reached the European Union / European Economic Area (EU / EEA) market. The control measures implemented since August 2020 on affected batches of sesame-based ...