Salmonella & Eggs UK: Food Safety, Risks and Prevention
Natasha A
Last updated: August 2026
Salmonella and eggs are once again attracting significant public attention, prompting questions about how Salmonella contamination happens, how food poisoning can be prevented and what food businesses should be doing to protect consumers.
The renewed interest is particularly relevant for restaurants, cafés, caterers, food manufacturers and anyone responsible for preparing, handling or serving food.
Salmonella is not simply an issue associated with eggs. The bacteria can be associated with several foods and can spread through poor handling practices and cross-contamination. Effective food safety therefore depends on understanding microbiological hazards, controlling contamination, maintaining good personal hygiene and following appropriate cleaning and disinfection procedures.
For food handlers, the lesson is simple: food safety controls matter before, during and after food preparation.
Why is Salmonella in the news?
Recent reporting has renewed attention on Salmonella and eggs in the UK.
This comes against a wider backdrop of elevated Salmonella infections. UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures published in May 2026 showed that 10,406 Salmonella cases were reported in England during 2025, the highest annual figure in a decade and broadly comparable with the already high level recorded in 2024.
UKHSA also reported that Salmonella infections can be acquired by eating contaminated foods including eggs, poultry, meat, raw fruit and vegetables, and unpasteurised milk products.
More recent UKHSA surveillance showed a notable increase at the beginning of 2026. Confirmed non-typhoidal Salmonella laboratory reports increased from 1,588 in the first quarter of 2025 to 2,020 in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 27.2%.
Thirteen Salmonella outbreaks were reported to national surveillance in England during 2025, involving 269 cases. Foods associated with those outbreaks included shelled eggs, dairy products, poultry and raw onions.
The figures demonstrate why Salmonella prevention remains an important part of food safety management.
What is Salmonella?
Salmonella is a group of bacteria capable of causing an illness known as salmonellosis.
It is a microbiological hazard, meaning it is a biological agent that can make food unsafe and potentially cause illness when contaminated food is consumed.
Understanding bacteria such as Salmonella, how they survive and how they can contaminate food is an important part of food hygiene.
Food handlers who want to develop their understanding of bacteria and other biological hazards can study the Microbiological Hazards (Food Safety Level 2) course from Certified CPD.
Can you get Salmonella from eggs?
Yes. Eggs can be one potential source of Salmonella infection, although they are not the only food associated with the bacteria.
Salmonella can also be associated with poultry, meat and other foods.
For food businesses, focusing exclusively on the original source of bacteria can miss another major part of the problem: what happens to contamination once it enters a food preparation environment.
Contaminated ingredients can potentially allow microorganisms to reach:
hands;
utensils;
chopping boards;
preparation surfaces;
equipment; and
other foods.
This is why controlling cross-contamination is an essential part of safe food handling.
Food handlers can learn more about identifying and controlling these risks through Contamination Hazards and Controls (Food Safety Level 2).
What are the symptoms of Salmonella?
Salmonella infection commonly causes gastrointestinal illness.
According to UKHSA, Salmonella and Campylobacter are among the most common causes of food poisoning. Young children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems can be at greater risk of serious illness.
Anyone who believes they may have Salmonella or is concerned about symptoms should seek appropriate healthcare advice rather than relying on food safety training or online articles for medical diagnosis.
For food businesses, illness among food handlers also raises an important hygiene issue. Employees need to understand their responsibilities when illness could affect food safety.
The Personal Hygiene (Food Safety Level 2) course explores the role personal hygiene plays in maintaining safe food handling practices.
How does Salmonella contamination spread?
A contaminated food does not necessarily remain an isolated hazard.
Poor food-handling practices can allow microorganisms to move from contaminated food to another food, surface or piece of equipment. This is known as cross-contamination.
For example, contamination could potentially be transferred when the same hands, utensils or food-contact surfaces are used for different foods without appropriate hygiene controls.
Food businesses therefore need procedures that reduce opportunities for microorganisms to spread.
These include:
separating foods where appropriate;
using suitable equipment and utensils;
effective hand hygiene;
preventing contact between contaminated materials and ready-to-eat food;
following appropriate cleaning procedures; and
training food handlers to understand contamination risks.
These principles are covered in greater detail in Contamination Hazards and Controls (Food Safety Level 2).
Why cleaning and disinfection matter
Cleaning and disinfection are closely related, but they are not identical.
Cleaning is concerned with removing dirt, grease, food debris and other unwanted material. Disinfection is intended to reduce microorganisms to an appropriate level.
This distinction matters when controlling microbiological hazards.
A surface that appears visually clean should not automatically be assumed to be microbiologically safe.
Food businesses need suitable procedures for cleaning food-contact surfaces, equipment and preparation areas, together with appropriate use of cleaning and disinfecting products.
Food handlers can explore these principles through Cleaning and Disinfection (Food Safety Level 2).
Cleaning chemicals must themselves be handled correctly. Businesses responsible for hazardous cleaning substances should also understand their workplace safety responsibilities. The Hazardous Substances – COSHH (Health and Safety Level 2) course provides additional training in this area.
How can food businesses reduce the risk of Salmonella?
There is no single food safety control that replaces all others.
Effective prevention depends on several controls working together.
1. Understand microbiological hazards
Staff should understand that harmful microorganisms may be present even when contamination cannot be seen, smelled or tasted.
Training in Microbiological Hazards (Food Safety Level 2) can help food handlers understand this important category of food hazard.
2. Prevent cross-contamination
Food businesses should identify where microorganisms could be transferred between ingredients, people, equipment and surfaces and introduce controls appropriate to their operation.
Learn more with Contamination Hazards and Controls (Food Safety Level 2).
3. Maintain effective personal hygiene
Hand hygiene and appropriate behaviour by food handlers are fundamental parts of contamination control.
The Personal Hygiene (Food Safety Level 2) course provides focused training on this area.
4. Clean and disinfect appropriately
Businesses should establish appropriate cleaning schedules and make sure employees understand what needs to be cleaned, when it needs to be cleaned and the procedures they are expected to follow.
See Cleaning and Disinfection (Food Safety Level 2).
5. Maintain suitable premises and equipment
Food safety controls extend beyond individual behaviour. The design, condition and maintenance of premises and equipment can affect how easily effective hygiene can be maintained.
The Food Premises and Equipment (Food Safety Level 2) course examines these wider food safety considerations.
6. Control pests
Pests can create additional contamination risks within food premises.
Food businesses should understand how to recognise signs of pest activity and the controls required to minimise pest-related risks. This is covered in Food Pests and Control (Food Safety Level 2).
7. Apply food safety controls throughout the process
Food safety does not begin when food reaches the kitchen or production line.
Businesses should consider hazards throughout receiving, storage, preparation, cooking, holding and service.
The HACCP: From Delivery to Service (Food Safety Level 2) course provides an introduction to applying hazard controls throughout this journey.
What does HACCP have to do with Salmonella?
Salmonella demonstrates exactly why food businesses need a systematic approach to identifying and controlling hazards.
HACCP — Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point — is a systematic approach to food safety that considers potential hazards and the controls required to manage them.
Rather than waiting for something to go wrong, the principle is to identify where significant hazards could occur and establish appropriate controls.
Those new to the subject can begin with Introduction to HACCP.
Businesses involved in manufacturing can also explore Level 3 HACCP in Manufacturing for more advanced training.
Why food poisoning prevention requires more than common sense
Food poisoning incidents often demonstrate why informal knowledge is not enough.
Food handlers need to understand:
how food can become contaminated;
which microorganisms create food safety risks;
how contamination can spread;
why temperature and time controls matter;
how personal hygiene affects food safety;
why cleaning and disinfection procedures matter; and
what controls their workplace requires.
The Food Poisoning and its Control (Food Safety Level 2) course provides focused learning on food poisoning and the measures used to control it.
What should managers and supervisors do?
Managers have an important role because safe procedures need to be implemented consistently rather than simply written down.
Depending on their responsibilities, managers and supervisors may need a broader understanding of food safety management, staff supervision and hazard controls.
Certified CPD offers Food Safety Level 3 training for learners who require more advanced food safety knowledge.
Food businesses should also understand the role of enforcement and their responsibilities under food safety requirements. The Food Safety Enforcement (Food Safety Level 2) course introduces this aspect of food safety.
What food safety training should food handlers take?
The appropriate training will depend on a person's role and responsibilities.
Someone beginning work around food may benefit from Food Safety Level 1.
Food handlers requiring broader knowledge can study Food Safety Level 2, while managers and those with greater food safety responsibilities can consider Food Safety Level 3.
There is also an Introduction to Food Safety (Food Safety Level 2) course for learners wanting to strengthen their understanding of the basic principles.
Those working specifically within production environments can explore Food Safety in Manufacturing Level 2.
Salmonella and eggs: frequently asked questions
Can eggs contain Salmonella?
Eggs can be associated with Salmonella, although they are not the only potential source. UKHSA identifies eggs alongside poultry, meat, raw fruit and vegetables and unpasteurised milk products among foods through which Salmonella infection can be acquired.
Is Salmonella only a risk from eggs?
No. Salmonella can be associated with several foods. UK surveillance of outbreaks during 2025 identified food vehicles including shelled eggs, dairy, poultry and raw onions.
What is cross-contamination?
Cross-contamination occurs when contamination is transferred from one food, person, surface or piece of equipment to another. Controlling it is an important part of food hygiene.
Why is Salmonella considered a microbiological hazard?
Salmonella is a bacterium capable of causing illness, so it falls within the microbiological or biological category of food hazards.
Can you tell whether food contains Salmonella by looking at it?
Potentially harmful microbiological contamination is not something food handlers should expect to identify simply through the appearance of food. This is one reason preventive food safety controls are so important.
Why are cleaning and disinfection important for Salmonella control?
Contaminated food can potentially transfer microorganisms to equipment and surfaces. Appropriate cleaning and disinfection procedures form part of the controls used to minimise microbiological contamination.
What food safety course covers Salmonella?
Learners wanting specifically to understand bacterial hazards can start with Microbiological Hazards (Food Safety Level 2). Broader training is available through Food Safety Level 2.
A reminder for every food business
Headlines about Salmonella and eggs can quickly attract public attention, but the underlying food safety principles are relevant every day.
Microbiological hazards do not become important only when an outbreak reaches the news.
Food businesses should continually consider whether staff understand the hazards associated with the food they handle, whether cross-contamination controls are effective, whether cleaning and disinfection procedures are followed correctly, and whether employees have received training appropriate to their responsibilities.
The goal is not simply to respond to the latest food safety story.
It is to develop a food safety culture in which employees understand what the controls are, why they exist and how their actions can protect consumers.
Refresh your food safety knowledge
Certified CPD provides online food safety training covering key topics including:
Explore the training and strengthen your understanding of the controls that help keep food safe.
Sources and further reading
BBC News: Salmonella outbreak / eggs reporting
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp30gqnpqjqo
UK Health Security Agency: Salmonella cases in England at a decade high, published 28 May 2026.
UK Health Security Agency: Gastrointestinal infections and outbreaks in England: 2024 to 2026, updated 25 June 2026.
Food Standards Agency: Incidents & Resilience Annual Report 2025/26, published 25 June 2026.
This article is provided for food safety education and general information. It is not medical advice. Anyone concerned about symptoms or possible Salmonella infection should seek appropriate healthcare advice.