Czech Republic Warns of Salmonella Infantis in Two Batches of Imported Chicken Meat Found in Sampling at a Retail Store

The Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) published on October 8, 2026 a warning to consumers over two batches of non-compliant chicken meat. The first corresponds to chicken hind quarters of Romanian origin and the second to chilled chicken thigh fillets of Hungarian origin. In both cases the laboratory analysis confirmed the presence of Salmonella Infantis, a serovar common in European poultry farming and a cause of salmonellosis in people.

Inspectors took the samples of both batches at a retail store in the north of the country during an official check. As the products have already passed their use-by date, they are not on sale. Even so, the SZPI firmly recommends that those who may have these products frozen at home not consume them, and clarifies that freezing has practically no effect on bacterial contamination: the bacterium survives low temperatures and is only eliminated by thorough cooking.

The inspection notified the findings to the European Union's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), so that the origin of the problem can be investigated in the countries of origin. It will also start an administrative procedure with the person inspected to impose a fine. Salmonella Infantis is one of the most frequent serovars in EU chicken and many isolates show resistance to antimicrobials, which makes its control on farms and in plants more important.

For importers, distributors and processing plants, the case shows the usefulness of verifying raw chicken meat before distribution, especially that coming from other countries. TAAG's Ampliora 1.1 Salmonella spp. kit, a real-time PCR, detects Salmonella spp. and among its validated matrices is raw chicken, so it matches the microorganism and the matrix of the warning. A positive result must be confirmed with the reference method required by regulations.