TABLE 57.
Top‐10 pathogen/food vehicle pairs causing the highest number of hospitalisations in strong‐evidence outbreaks in reporting EU MSs, 2022.
| 2022 a | 2018–2021 a,b | Evaluation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank c | Causative agent | Food vehicle | Hospitalisations (N) | Reporting MS (N hospitalisations) | Rank c | Hospitalisations (N/year) (range) | Reporting MS (N/year) | 2022 versus 2018–2021 d |
| 1 | Salmonella | Eggs and egg products e | 124 | Poland (43), Spain (32), France (22), Slovakia (12), Belgium (9), Austria (4), Italy (2) | 1 | 215.3 (46–382) | 7.0 | ↓ |
| 2 | Listeria monocytogenes | Broiler meat (Gallus gallus) and products thereof f | 97 | Italy (97) | 31 | 4.3 (1–16) | 0.75 | ↑↑ |
| 3 | Listeria monocytogenes | Pig meat and products thereof g | 63 | Italy (43), Denmark (9), Netherlands (7), Austria (3), Hungary (1) h | 22 | 8.8 (6–29) | 0.50 | ↑↑ |
| 4 | Salmonella | Mixed food i | 61 | Romania (17), Spain (15), Finland (12), Slovakia (8), Germany (6), Hungary (2), France (1) | 2 | 96.3 (11–198) | 6.3 | ↓ |
| 5 | Salmonella | Bakery products j | 60 | Romania (37), Poland (9), Italy (7), Spain (4), Czechia (3) | 4 | 65.5 (21–99) | 3.5 | ‐ |
| 6 | Staphylococcus aureus toxins | Mixed food k | 58 | Sweden (38), Portugal (20) | 7 | 30.3 (21–53) | 2.5 | ↑↑ |
| 7 | Salmonella | Pig meat and products thereof l | 57 | Germany (25), Greece (19), France (5), Italy (5), Lithuania (2), Spain (1) | 6 | 42.0 (22–55) | 5.5 | ↑ |
| 8 | Salmonella | Sweets and chocolate m | 56 | Belgium (28), Germany (11), Austria (5), Czechia (4), Ireland (4), Denmark (1), Luxembourg (1), Italy (1), Netherlands (1) | 16 | 13.8 (8–27) | 2.3 | ↑↑ |
| 9 | Salmonella | Bovine meat and products thereof n | 37 | Slovenia (33), Italy (2), Denmark (2) | 34 | 3.5 (0–8) | 1.5 | ↑↑ |
| 10 | Salmonella | Water o | 32 | Netherlands (25), Greece (7) | 46 | 0.50 (0–2) | 0.25 | ↑↑ |
For the 2021–2022 period, data on FBOs from the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland) were taken into account. In accordance with the agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU, and in particular with the Ireland/Northern Ireland protocol, the EU requirements on data sampling are also applicable to the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland).
For the 2018–2019 period, data on FBOs from the United Kingdom were taken into account, because the United Kingdom was still an EU MS at that time. However, on 1 February 2020 it became a third country.
Ranking of the food vehicle based on the number of hospitalisations in strong‐evidence FBOs in which the combination (causative agent/food vehicle) was implicated (rank 1 is the highest rank meaning the most commonly implicated). Strong‐evidence outbreaks with unknown causative agents are not included.
A single arrow indicates variations of 25% and 50% in the number of outbreaks; double arrows indicate variations > 50%; a ‘stable' value indicates variations of between −25% and + 25%.
In 2022, ‘Eggs and egg products’ include ‘eggs and egg products’ (112), ‘eggs’ (12).
In 2022, ‘Broiler meat (Gallus gallus) and products thereof’ include ‘meat from broilers (Gallus gallus) – meat products’ (97).
In 2022, ‘Pig meat and products thereof’ includes ‘meat from pig – meat products’ (43), ‘meat from pig – meat products – ready‐to‐eat’ (16), ‘meat from pig – meat products – cooked ham’ (3), ‘pig meat and products thereof’ (1).
During the last phase of the production of this draft report, Hungary informed us that the one strong‐evidence outbreak (one hospitalisation) caused by Listeria monocytogenes, with ‘pig meat and products thereof’ as the implicated food vehicle was reported in error.
In 2022, ‘Mixed food’ includes ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes – meat based dishes’ (20), ‘mixed food’ (18), ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes – sandwiches – with meat’ (12), ‘ready‐to‐eat salads’ (6), ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes – fish and seafood based dishes’ (2), ‘sauce and dressings’ (2), ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes’ (1)
In 2022, ‘Bakery products’ include ‘bakery products – cakes’ (41), ‘bakery products – desserts – containing raw eggs’ (11), ‘bakery products – desserts – containing raw cream’ (5), ‘bakery products’ (3).
In 2022, ‘Mixed food’ includes ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes – pasta’ (38), ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes’ (14), ‘other processed food products and prepared dishes – finger food’ (6).
In 2022, ‘Pig meat and products thereof’ includes ‘pig meat and products thereof’ (30), ‘meat from pig – fresh’ (11), ‘meat from pig – meat products – meat specialities’ (9), ‘meat from pig – minced meat – intended to be eaten raw’ (5), ‘cured seasoned pork meat’ (2).
In 2022, ‘Sweets and chocolate' include ‘sweets and chocolate' (28), ‘chocolate' (24), ‘confectionery products and pastes ‐ soft candy’ (4).
In 2022, ‘Bovine meat and products thereof’ includes ‘meat from bovine animals – meat preparation – intended to be eaten raw’ (33), ‘bovine meat and products thereof’ (2), ‘meat from bovine animals – minced meat’ (2).
In 2022, ‘Water’ includes ‘tap water, including well water’ (32).