Our food safety friend in France shared a report that concluded from Dec. 24 2012, the Paris Child Protection Service reported several cases of salmonellosis cases in children hosted in 4 nurseries located in the 7th borough of Paris. In a second step, the National Reference Laboratory for Salmonella noticed an increase of salmonellosis cases in Paris in December 2012 and for several cases, an until now rare Crispol profile was identified — CT51.

Investigations were performed and 40 cases were identified: 30 confirmed cases, 4 possible cases and 6 probable
 cases. They were 10 children hosted in 4 nurseries and 30 community cases. The outbreak was due to 2 strains of Salmonella: S.Typhimurium CT51 and S.4,12:i:-, a monophasic variant of serovar Typhimurium.

During the telephone interview of the cases, it occurred that most of the cases went to a butchery located in the 7th borough of Paris a few days before the onset of the disease. A random inspection led in the butchery by the Food Hygiene Service revealed many infringements to food hygiene. Some samples were taken in the butchery and 2 S.Typhymurium CT51 and S.4,12:i:- strains were found on the surfaces and in the food sold by the butcher.

This investigation emphasized the role played by observation and early reporting of the Child Protection Service. This report was the visible part of a larger epidemic event that included both cases living in institutions and in the community which occurred simultaneously.