A salmonella outbreak in the UK in December last year may be linked to watermelons, the Fresh Produce Journal reports.
The country'sHealth Protection Agency (HPA) is apparently investigating an outbreak of a strainof Salmonella Newport bacterial infection among 30 people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland since the beginning of December 2011.
Cases of illness caused by the same strain have also been confirmed in Scotland, Ireland and Germany.
The 30 cases documented in the UK ranged in age from six months to 85 years, with one person understood to have died – although they reportedly had serious underlying health complications.
More than two-thirds of cases were women, with the east of England having more cases than other regions.
Dr Bob Adak, head of the gastrointestinal diseases department at the HPA, said: “Although it’s too soon to say with certainty what the likely cause of infection is, early indications suggest that a number of people became unwell after eating watermelon.'
He added: 'This has also been noted in the cases in Scotland and Germany although further investigation is ongoing.'
SalmonellaNewport has been found in many different foods in previous UK outbreaks: the largest one was in 2004 and was associated with the consumption of lettuce at restaurants and takeaways.
Alison Gleadle, director of food safety at the FSA, said: 'We’ve been notified by the HPA about the outbreak of illness caused by a particular strain of Salmonella Newport. We are monitoring the situation and working closely with the European Commission, other countries, local authorities and the food industry, to investigate further.”
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