CDC, public health and regulatory officials in several states, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the Canadian Food Safety Agency investigated an outbreak of hepatitis A linked to imported fresh organic strawberries.
These potentially contaminated fresh organic strawberries were imported from Baja California, a state in northern Mexico, and branded as FreshKampo and HEB by a common supplier; they were purchased in the United States during March 5, 2022, through April 15, 2022.
Traceback investigations showed that outbreak-associated cases in California and Minnesota purchased FreshKampo brand fresh organic strawberries prior to becoming ill. The Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency also investigated an outbreak of hepatitis A; imported FreshKampo brand fresh organic strawberries were identified as the likely source of that outbreak.
A La Carte Produkter AS in Oslo is recalling oysters (Crassonstrea Gigas) from Ireland, via France, of the brands “BB Boudeuse No 5” and “Royale No 3”. The reason is suspicion of norovirus, following several cases of illness.
Oyster label
The withdrawal applies to the following product:
Product name: Oysters (Crassostrea Gigas)
Name of the company that is recalling the goods: A La Carte Produkter AS
Batch: “BOUDEUSE 22464BBOU5”, “BOUDEUSE 22474BBOU5”, and “ROYALE 22474ROY3”.
The oysters are farmed in Ireland.
The products are sold to restaurants, grocery stores and delicatessens all over Norway.
A La Carte Products asks consumers who have purchased the product to throw it away or return it to where the product was purchased.
Oysters are often eaten raw without heat treatment, and they can contain viruses, most often norovirus. Norovirus is the most common cause of viral diarrheal disease in Norway. Boiling and frying will kill norovirus, but it is uncertain whether steaming has sufficient effect.
Contact person at the business: Monica Skålvoll 975 15 690
Contact person in the Norwegian Food Safety Authority: Odd Eirik Breivik odebr@mattilsynet.no 22 77 78 09
In 2018, 30 European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries reported 15 815 cases of hepatitis A, of which 15 677 (99.1%) were confirmed.
Key facts
•In 2018, 30 European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA)countries reported 15 815 cases of hepatitis A, of which 15 677 (99.1%) were confirmed.
•Romania and Spain accounted for 43.5% of all confirmed cases
•The EU/EEA notification rate was 3.0 cases per 100 000 population. Ten EU/EEA countries had a notificationrateofless than one confirmed case per 100 000 population. The countries with the highest notification rates were Bulgaria (19.1 cases per 100 000 population) and Romania (23.2 cases per 100000 population).
•In 2018, a considerable reduction in the number of reported cases and notification rates was observed compared with2017. This is because 2017 was characterised by an unprecedented large and prolongedmulti-countryoutbreak disproportionally affecting men who have sex with men, which mainlysubsided during 2018.
•Similar to previous years (excluding 2017), children between the ages of fiveand 14 years accounted for a large proportion of cases (29%) and the highest notification rate (8.2 cases per 100 000 population).
P&O passengers claim they suffered from diarrhea and vomiting and had to self-isolate in unsanitary conditions after being exposed to norovirus on a number of Australian cruises.
A class action filed in federal court on Tuesday seeks compensation and damages from Carnival, trading as P&O Cruises, for outbreaks of the highly contagious gastrointestinal virus on eight separate voyages from December 2016 to February 2017.
Exportadora Copramar is recalling 1260 cases of James Farm frozen raspberries due to the potential of the product being contaminated with Hepatitis A.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) testing indicated the presence of Hepatitis A in James Farm branded frozen raspberries identified by UPC Code: 76069501010 and Lot Code – 22-165.
The recalled frozen raspberries are packaged in foodservice 10 lb James Farm branded cartons. The product is exclusively sold through Restaurant Depot/Jetro locations in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.
All inventories of the effected lot have been removed from Restaurant Depot/Jetro locations. Restaurant Depot/Jetro locations are also directly contacting their customers regarding this recall. There have been no illnesses or adverse reaction reports to date related to this product.
This Notice affects the following product:
1260 cases of James Farms Frozen Raspberries : 2/5 lb. bags per 10 lb carton
“Best if used by ” date of June 14th, 2024 .
“Product of Chile.”UPC Code: 76069501010, Lot Code – CO 22-165
UPC code is found on the top of the carton with the lot code on the bottom of the carton.
No other retail packages of frozen raspberry products are included in this voluntary recall. Consumers who have purchased the above products should not consume them and should either discard them or return them to point of sale / place of purchase for a full refund
Company Contact Information
Exportadora Compramar
302-401-6474 ext 223, Monday through Friday between 9am and 6pm Eastern Standard Time.
Norovirus (NoV) is the most important cause of seafood-borne gastroenteritis worldwide, mainly associated with the consumption of raw oysters. NoV is often present in oysters that comply with existing control standards for shellfish. Therefore, the improvement of post-harvest treatments and practices can represent one of the main strategies to reduce the incidence of viral diseases related to shellfish. This study aimed to investigate long-term relays for the reduction of NoV levels in live oysters, during the high-risk cold months, by transferring the oysters from a more contaminated site to two sites with lower NoV levels. The efficacy of relaying was evaluated by analyzing oyster samples collected at days 0 (T0) and 30 (T30) for NoV levels using a real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). The NoV level at the relay sites was consistently lower than at the harvest site. The relay process for 30 days in seawater with a lower NoV level resulted in a decrease in the NoV load compared to day 0 with significant reductions depending on the site and genogroup of NoV considered. These results suggest that long-term relaying of oysters to reduce NoV levels is promising and could help growers to improve oyster safety; however, further investigations are needed.
Like norovirus, Sapovirus is a virus belonging to the Caliciviridae family which multiplies in the mucous membranes of the human small intestine.
In 2002, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses officially gave this virus the name of “Sapovirus; prior to that time it was known as the “Sapporo virus.”
The “Sapo” in “Sapovirus” is derived from Sapporo, Japan, where the virus was discovered.
Previously, Sapovirus was believed to be the cause of sporadic gastroenteritis mainly in children, but in recent years reports have been on the rise of mass outbreaks such as food poisoning..
Like norovirus, Sapovirus causes gastroenteritis throughout the year.
Epidemiological studies have strongly identified the eating of raw bivalves such as oysters and food prep workers carrying the virus as being part of the virus’ transmission route. In addition, as there have been cases of mass outbreaks at facilities such as schools and day cares where no raw oysters were eaten, person to person secondary infection is suspected to exist.
In recent years, the development and popularization of a new testing method (real-time PCR) has clarified the relationship between Sapovirus and food poisoning.
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