Rising rates of Campylobacter and Salmonella in England
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has published its first annual report summarizing trends in infectious diseases. The report provides an overview of infections of public health importance for the most recent years for which data is available, as well as the work being carried out by UKHSA and its partners to control their spread and mitigate their harmful impact.
According to the UKHSA Infectious Diseases Impacting England 2025 report, the trends for Salmonella and Campylobacter in England from 2022 to 2024 are as follows:
Campylobacter
- There was a notable increase in Campylobacter cases between 2022 and 2024.
- Laboratory reports per 100,000 population rose from 96.1 in 2022 to 122.0 in 2024.
- This represents a 27.0% increase in reported cases over the two-year period.
- The report attributes the increase to multiple potential factors, though specific causes are still under investigation and further analysis is underway.
Salmonella
- Similarly, Salmonella laboratory reports also showed a significant increase during the same time frame.
- The incidence rose from 14.5 to 18.0 per 100,000 population, a 24.1% increase between 2022 and 2024.
- As with Campylobacter, the exact reasons for this rise are being further analyzed by UKHSA.
These trends reflect a broader post-pandemic resurgence of certain gastrointestinal infections, likely influenced by changes in food handling, travel, surveillance, or diagnostic practices following the COVID-19 pandemic.
