An outbreak of Salmonella Agona extending from October through the beginning of December 2022 affecting patients in Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands has been traced to cucumbers imported from a distributor in Spain.

This case demonstrates the ability of public health authorities to cooperate in tracing outbreaks of potential foodborne infections through databases incorporating the results of molecular and field epidemiologic investigations. Identification of cucumbers as the vehicle of infection eliminated other hypotheses relating to the source of infection and facilitated preventive measures.

In 2011 over 4,000 cases of intestinal infection were diagnosed mostly in Germany but with a few cases in France due to STEC (strain O114:H4). Infection with this pathogen produced severe hemorrhagic diarrhea and a significant number of cases of hemolytic uremia syndrome. The investigations over a prolonged period during the summer of 2011 implicated salads and initially incorrectly suggested alternative possible vehicles of infection until fenugreek sprouts from Egypt were confirmed as the vehicle of infection by the European Food Safety Agency.