Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease with different and complex routes for transmission. Workers occupationally exposed to animals or raw meat and viscera (WOE) may be at more risk than the general population, however conflicting data exist on the risk of developing toxoplasmosis due to this close contact. To add knowledge to this topic, the aim of the present study was to ascertain if WOE were more likely to be anti-T. gondii IgG seropositive than the general population as well as to study risk factors for T. gondii infection such as professional activity, gender, age, years of work and region. For this purpose, a case–control study using archived samples was setup. A total of 114 WOE (including pig slaughterhouse workers, butchers, veterinarians and farmers) and 228 anonymous volunteers (matched with cases by region, age and gender) were studied for anti-T. gondii IgG. A significantly higher anti-T. gondii IgG occurrence (p = 0.0282) was found in WOE when compared with the general population (72.8% [CI = 64.6–81.0%] versus 60.1% [CI = 54.6–65.6%]). Multivariate analysis showed that WOE of more than 50 years of age were more likely to be seropositive for anti-T. gondii IgG (aOR = 16.8; 95% CI 3.6–77.5; p < 0.001) than those aged less than 50 years. To our knowledge, this is the first case–control study on the prevalence of anti-T. gondii IgG in WOE in Portugal, also showing an added risk for T. gondii infection in those exposed to animals or their meat and viscera.

(1) Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an important zoonosis and one of the major causes of abortion in sheep worldwide. (2) Methods: We performed a 2-year longitudinal serological anti-T. gondii IgG screening on a cohort of a spatially confined population of a Portuguese autochthonous sheep breed in central Portugal. (3) Results: From the screening of the 2015 and 2016 sera, an increase of seroprevalence was observed (57.7% (95% CI: 49.9–65.3%) versus 69.1% (95% CI: 61.5–75.9), from 2015 and 2016, respectively) (p = 0.031). (4) Conclusions The present study is the first to provide prospective data on the anti-T. gondii serological status of a sheep cohort in Portugal, showing an increase in the occurrence of T. gondii. There is a need to provide a clearer understanding of T. gondii epidemiology in Portugal, ideally by implementing monitoring programs on sentinel herds, not only due to the high impact of T. gondii on animal health but also for it being a zoonosis.