Rising numbers of imported eggs are being blamed for outbreaks
The UK Health Security Agency set alarm bells ringing last week when it revealed an ongoing salmonella outbreak had infected more than 200 people in England this year, hospitalising more than a third.
As of 25 August, the number in that cluster of infections had risen to 259, while two genetically similar clusters had been identified, dating to back to May last year and bringing total cases to 474. Two deaths have been recorded.
Although the exact source has not been confirmed, UKHSA has suggested all are associated with imported eggs and is investigating the clusters in parallel.
The outbreaks are part of a longer-term pattern. In May, the UKHSA announced that laboratory reports of salmonella in England hit a decade high of 10,406 in 2025 – up 26.3% on the figure recorded in 2016.
So, why is it on the rise? And what needs to change?
The number of eggs imported annually to the UK has risen 60% to 1.6 billion since 2021, according to the British Egg Industry Council, which says much of the rise comes from Poland and Ukraine. The latter gained a UK free trade agreement in 2022, with tariff-free access for eggs until 2028.
The NFU opposed a two-year extension to that deal from 2026. It warns the difference in animal welfare standards between the UK and Ukraine – where battery cages banned in the UK are still in widespread use – leaves domestic producers “unable to compete” on price.
Most eggs sold in UK supermarkets bear the British Lion mark, a voluntary safety standard introduced in 1998 to eliminate salmonella, including through vaccination, and carried by 90% of British eggs. The FSA endorses these as safe. But eggs without the mark, including from Ukraine, have more opportunity to find their way into wholesale, manufacturing and out of home.
The UKHSA says 83% of salmonella victims in 2026 reported eating food prepared outside their homes in the week prior to falling ill. Five food businesses “where two or more independent cases reported attending in the week prior to symptom onset” have been identified, linking 24 cases. It may not be coincidence that the trajectory of salmonella cases in England dipped in 2020 and 2021, with foodservice in lockdown (see chart, above).
Defra standards for all eggs sold for human consumption in the UK, including those imported, state that producers with over 350 hens must test the flock annually for salmonella.
But as little as 15% of imported eggs may undergo identity and physical checks on arrival, the FSA acknowledges, while maintaining that like other food types eggs must meet UK legislative requirements.
BEIC chair Mark Williams calls the checks “absolutely minimal” and demands they be “upped” immediately.
Bird Brothers commercial director Matthew Bird says there is “essentially a two-tier system” for importers and domestic producers.
British sourcing
Imports also make up a shortfall in domestic production, with the UK producing 89% of its own eggs. But Williams argues that if foodservice were to source more domestically, production would be boosted. “It will help lift our self-sufficiency,” while giving consumers the reassurance the eggs have been “produced to the highest standards in the world”.
A Noble Foods spokesperson echoes: “UK egg farmers invest heavily in food safety, animal health and traceability, and consumers should have confidence that the same high standards apply regardless of origin.”
Williams is demanding the government “name the source” of infected eggs, so consumers can avoid them.
Noble Foods says the industry also wants the government to provide “reassurance that current and future trade arrangements support the principle” of British production standards.
A Defra spokesperson says: “There is a clear demand for high-quality British eggs and in our approach to trade, we will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage.”
For Williams, it’s not enough, with rising outbreaks undermining consumer confidence in eggs and threatening a public health “disaster”.
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