Oregon-based Willamette Valley Fruit Co issued a recall for packages of frozen fruit sold at Walmart, Costco and HEB stores around the nation – the latest company to do so amid an outbreak of Hepatitis A infections.
The select packages Great Value and Radar Farms frozen fruit contain strawberries that were grown in Mexico and have the potential to be contained with Hepatitis A, according to a recall notice posted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The notice came just after California-based Wawona Frozen Foods issued a recall for year-old bags of frozen fruit that were shipped to Costco stores.
The FDA has been working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) as well as with other state public health and regulatory officials to investigate the multi-state outbreak of infections that started in November 2022 and have been linked to frozen organic strawberries imported from certain farms located in Baja California, Mexico.
To date, nine people have fallen ill in three states, including three people who have been hospitalized.
The Hepatitis A virus strain in this outbreak is genetically identical to the strain that caused the hepatitis A outbreak in 2022 which left over a dozen people hospitalized, according to the CDC.
The frozen fruit in the latest recall hasn't been tied to any illnesses. However, consumers are still urged to discard or return the products.
The affected Great Value Sliced Strawberries, Great Value Mixed Fruit and Great Value Antioxidant Blend packages were distributed to select Walmart stores in over 30 states between January 24, 2023 to June 8, 2023.
FROZEN FRUIT RECALLED OVER RISK OF HEPATITIS A CONTAMINATION
The recalled Rader Farms Organic Fresh Start Smoothie Blend packages were distributed to Costco Wholesale stores in Colorado, Texas, California, and Arizona between October 3, 2022 and June 8, 2023. The Rader Farms Organic Berry Trio packages were distributed to HEB stores in Texas between July 18, 2022 to June 8, 2023.
Federal health officials have been working to identifying additional firms that may be affected in the latest outbreak given that the contaminated strawberries may be sold to a variety of retailers under multiple brands, the CDC said.
According to the FDA, Hepatitis A is a contagious liver disease that is caused by exposure to the Hepatitis A virus.
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Illnesses will usually start between 15 and 50 days after consuming food or water that has been contaminated with the hepatitis A virus, according to the CDC. Symptoms include fatigue, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, jaundice, dark urine as well as pale stool. However, in some instances, children under the age of 6 may be asymptomatic.
Infection can last anywhere from a few weeks to several months. In rare cases, Hepatitis A infections can progress to liver failure in those with a pre-existing severe illness or who are immune compromised.
