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Emilia-Romagna has ordered public and private foodservice providers at schools, hospitals and care facilities to stop serving uncooked cherry tomatoes until further notice. The measure follows Salmonella cases linked by epidemiological, microbiological or genomic evidence to raw cherry and datterini tomatoes; authorities say investigations and traceability work are continuing.
Authorities in Emilia-Romagna have ordered public and private foodservice providers at schools, social care facilities, hospitals and nursing homes to stop using uncooked cherry tomatoes, citing Salmonella infections linked to raw tomatoes and ongoing investigations. The restriction applies until further notice, and officials say violations could lead to prosecution.
The regional notice says the measure covers cherry tomatoes that have not undergone cooking and applies across the listed institutional settings. Officials described it as a precautionary measure intended to protect public health while investigations continue. It does not state that all tomatoes are prohibited, or set out a ban on cooked tomatoes.
Regional surveillance recorded 112 Salmonella Strathcona cases and five infections from monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium in Emilia-Romagna between 2024 and 2026. The regional notice says cases in several European countries and Italian regions during those years have been linked, through epidemiological, microbiological or genomic evidence, to consumption of raw cherry and datterini tomatoes.
A national task force convened on Sept. 30, 2026, found that recent outbreaks in Puglia, Lombardy, Lazio and Friuli-Venezia Giulia were linked to fresh tomatoes contaminated with monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium sequence type 34 or Salmonella Strathcona sequence type 2559, according to the source report. Since July, more than 160 infections have been recorded across 10 European countries. The figures cover the reported outbreak period; the source material does not provide a single shared cutoff date for every national count.
Restrictions Reach Schools and Hospitals
The order affects meals served in settings where people may depend on institutions for food, including children, hospital patients and residents of care homes. Suspending uncooked tomatoes is intended to reduce exposure in those settings while officials assess the outbreak, but the notice does not quantify how much risk the restriction is expected to remove.
The development also points to a wider food-safety challenge: outbreaks associated with fresh produce can cross regional and national borders, while supply chains make it difficult to trace particular products. Emilia-Romagna officials said the complex traceability of fresh tomato supply chains has hindered efforts to identify involved operators and establish where products were distributed. That uncertainty can complicate targeted warnings and responses.
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A Multi-Year Tomato Investigation
The regional notice cited two outbreak assessments by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the European Food Safety Authority, issued in 2024 and 2025, as well as notifications through the EU’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed. The cases described in those assessments span multiple years and include more than one Salmonella strain.
Emilia-Romagna is not the only region to restrict raw tomato service. Puglia had earlier suspended serving raw fresh tomatoes at institutional catering centers and distribution points, including nurseries, schools, healthcare facilities and residential care homes. The action followed an increase in Salmonella Strathcona infections and the detection of Salmonella in a tomato batch from Caltanissetta, according to the source report.
Evidence cited in the wider investigation includes the outbreak strain detected in Austria in late 2025 in organic cherry tomatoes from Italy. The strain had also previously been found in irrigation water at a tomato producer in Sicily. These findings form part of the reported investigation; they do not, on their own, establish the source of every infection.
Source and Distribution Still Under Review
The regional order does not identify a specific producer, supplier, brand or batch responsible for the cases. Officials say investigations are continuing, and the complex supply chain has made it difficult to determine which operators were involved and where products went. The evidence linking cases to raw tomatoes does not establish that every tomato product, or every infection in the outbreak, came from the same source.
The source material also does not provide a final outbreak case count, a complete list of affected products, or an end date for the Emilia-Romagna order. It says the restriction remains in force until further notice. The reported total of more than 160 infections across 10 European countries is given from July 2026 onward, but no common reporting cutoff is specified.
Investigations Will Guide Any Change
Authorities will continue investigating infections and tomato supply chains while the restriction remains in force. The notice does not give a date for a review or say what evidence would be needed to lift the order. Foodservice providers covered by the measure must comply unless regional authorities issue a change; officials warn that breaches could lead to prosecution.
Further updates may clarify whether investigators can identify particular suppliers or distribution routes, and whether additional regions or countries change their precautions. Until then, the confirmed local direction is limited to uncooked cherry tomatoes in the specified Emilia-Romagna institutions, not a general prohibition on all tomatoes.
Key Questions
Where has uncooked tomato service been suspended?
The order applies in Emilia-Romagna to public and private foodservice providers serving schools, social care facilities, hospitals and nursing homes.
Which tomatoes are covered by the order?
The notice covers cherry tomatoes that have not been cooked. It does not describe a ban on all tomato products or cooked tomatoes.
How long will the restriction last?
Authorities say it remains in place until further notice. The regional notice does not give a review date or an end date.
Have officials identified the source of the infections?
Not in the information provided. Authorities say cases have been linked to raw cherry and datterini tomatoes, but complex supply chains have made it difficult to identify the operators and product distribution details.
How many cases have been reported?
Emilia-Romagna recorded 112 Salmonella Strathcona cases and five monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium infections between 2024 and 2026. The source report also says more than 160 infections have been recorded in 10 European countries since July 2026, without specifying one shared reporting cutoff.
Source: foodsafetynews.com
