A pesto pasta salad has been officially blamed for a food poisoning outbreak at a horseriding event in Roeser.

The conclusion was drawn by Luxembourg’s Health Ministry following an investigation into the food-borne infection, which spread among people who ate from the buffet of a VIP area at the event from June 12 to 13.

Analysis of the stools of 10 people admitted to emergency services were found to contain Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

Food hygiene inspections of the caterers who prepared the buffet showed minor deficiencies in procedures for producing and storing food at the event.

Initially, the smoked salmon was blamed for the food poisoning outbreak. But, the investigation found that among those who fell ill, 82 percent reported having eaten the pesto pasta salad.

At the time of the investigation, no sample of the actual food served was available for testing, however.