'Food poisoning' leaves 40 people with diarrhoea and vomiting during wedding reception at Malaga hotel

Forty wedding guests fell ill with diarrhoea and vomiting after a reception at a hotel in Malaga in a suspected food poisoning outbreak.

The celebration took place at the Hotel Estival Torrequebrada in Benalmadena on Saturday, October 10.

Guests suffered diarrhoea, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, with some also reporting fever, according to the Junta de Andalucia's health delegation in Malaga.

Those affected sought medical assessment at hospitals, although none needed to be admitted, The Spanish Eye reported.

Health officials have launched an investigation into a suspected foodborne illness linked to the wedding menu.

Inspectors from the Health Protection Unit are carrying out checks to establish the source of the outbreak.

The precise cause has yet to be confirmed.

The hotel expressed concern for those affected and wished them a speedy recovery.

In a statement, it said it had fully cooperated with health authorities from the outset and commissioned an independent technical review of procedures related to the event.

'Relevant checks and analyses are currently underway, and the results are not yet known,' it said.

The hotel added that it was premature to draw conclusions about the cause before technical and health reports were available.

It said it would continue cooperating with authorities but would not comment further on possible causes or liability while the investigation remained ongoing.

This is not the first time wedding celebrations have taken a turn for the worse due to food poisoning.

In 2024, a four-course menu at a ceremony in Mexico left more than 100 invitees terribly ill, with 80 people being admitted to hospital.

Aranza Rodríguez attended the ceremony in the central city of Cuernavaca and was rushed to a Red Cross hospital where she was treated for bacterial infection.

Rodríguez told Mexican newspaper Proceso that she was a guest of the groom, Fernando, whose wedding party started around 4pm with dinner set to be served at 6pm.

She recalled arriving at the wedding venue between 8pm and 9pm and noticing that many of the guests were experiencing 'aggravated symptoms' that included headaches, stomach pain, vomit and diarrhoea.

Despite the unsettling scene, Rodríguez placed her meal order and dined at about 10pm as ambulances started to arrive.

Rodríguez recalled being served wild mushrooms with goat cheese and tomato coulis as the appetizer.

For her main course dish, she was served chicken breast stuffed with spinach, tarragon and sweet potato puree as well as winter asparagus. She said male guests were served a different selection of food items, which included meat with a whiskey sauce for the main course.

While she is not sure which of the meals made her sick, she remembers the wild mushrooms had the aftertaste of a 'very strong chemical'. She recalls the same smell after she was sick.

Footage on social media showed the frantic moment paramedics, staff and healthy attendees provided assistance to sick guests.

On one video, at least two women were hunched on a chair, appearing as if they had vomited.

Another video showed multiple guests lying on hospital beds and receiving IV treatment.

An image of the menu revealed guests were served an appetizer featuring wild mushroom with goat cheese and tomato coulis as well as beet carpaccio with mango, pico de gallo.

The entrée included sun dried tomato cream and crispy goat cheese with chives and a pistachio and pear dry cream. The main course option were chicken breast stuffed with spinach, tarragon, sweet potato puree and winter asparagus.

The second choice was a beef fillet breaded with whiskey and almond sauce, vegetable skewer and a bed of potatoes.

For dessert, friends of the couple were served apple rosette with supreme lime, blossom ice cream, chocolate and walnut cheesecake melon or milk flower chemise.

While men and women appeared to be served different foods, both genders became ill, she said.