Between May and August 2026, more than 80 people in various regions of France were infected with salmonella, and the source of the infection was pumpkin seeds, the republic's health and agriculture ministries said in a joint statement.
"The investigation ... shows that the source of the infection was pumpkin seeds supplied by a processing plant in the department of Lo and Garonne ... The French Ministry of Health ... has identified a genomic group of Salmonella Enteritidis, which to date has 81 cases of infection with the same strain," the statement said.
According to the statement of the departments, the strains were found in patients from May 3 to August 12. During the investigation, the French Ministry of Health surveyed some of the patients to find out what foods they consumed, when and where. Six of the respondents were hospitalized, two went to the emergency department due to the infection. At the moment, all patients have recovered and returned home.
The Civil Protection Department of the Lot-et-Garonne department has conducted an inspection of the seed processing plant, but so far it has not been possible to identify the source of the contamination. The management of the enterprise itself, without waiting for the completion of the inspection, has begun a recall of its products from retail chains. The departments noted in their statement that not only unpackaged pumpkin seeds are subject to recall, but also mixtures in the composition of which they are included.
