Danish authorities have linked a Listeria outbreak to a brand of ready-to-eat fish cakes.
Five people have been infected by the same type of Listeria since mid-August.
According to the Statens Serum Institut (SSI), patients are two men and three women. They are between 70 and 95 years old with a median age of 75. All of them have been hospitalized.
The sick people live in different parts of the country with three in Sjælland and two in Nordjylland.
The National Food Institute at the Technical University of Denmark, Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (Fødevarestyrelsen), and Statens Serum Institut investigated the outbreak.
Fish cakes as the source
“An outbreak involving five people is serious and is investigated without delay. When interviewing the patients, we quickly discovered that they had all eaten ready-to-eat fish cakes,” said Susanne Schjørring, department head at SSI.
Tenax Sild A/S, which produces the fish cakes, recalled them after Listeria monocytogenes was detected.
An inspection report at the company from earlier this month made no major comments. It checked the firm’s procedure for environmental and product samples, documentation on sampling for Listeria and the procedure when positive environmental samples are found. The company had seven positive environmental samples from August 2025.
“Bacteria from patients and samples of fish cakes from the manufacturer have been compared. We have found that the bacteria are identical. This shows that the infection came from the manufacturer,” said senior researcher Brian Lassen from the National Food Institute.
Recalled items were sold in specialist shops and supermarkets across the country such as Meny, Spar, Coop, and Rema1000. The latest best before date is Oct. 10, 2025.
“Although Tenax Sild has recalled the fish cakes, there may be consumers who have the products at home. If this is the case, we encourage consumers to either throw them away or return them to the store,” said Ulrich Pinstrup, section manager at the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration.
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