There has been one foodborne illness outbreak and multiple major recalls due to frozen fruit contaminated by two different pathogens. Regulatory and food safety personnel are especially concerned because many of these products have best-by dates extending into 2024, and consumers may still have them in their freezers.
The first recalls were initiated in February 2023 due to a hepatitis A outbreak linked to frozen strawberries. Although four months have elapsed, more products have been added to the recall list and the outbreak is ongoing.
The potentially contaminated products involve multiple brands including Great Value Mixed Fruit, Great Value Sliced Strawberries and Great Value Antioxidant Fruit Blend; Rader Farms Organic Fresh Start Smoothie Blend and Rader Farms Organic Berry Trio; Wawona brand Organic DayBreak Blend; Kirkland Signature Frozen Organic Whole Strawberries; Simply Nature; Vital Choice; Made With; PCC Community Markets frozen organic strawberries; and Trader Joe’s Organic Tropical Fruit Blend. Great Value products were sold at Walmart in states including Washington and Idaho while the Organic DayBreak Blend was sold in Costco Wholesale stores in Washington. Recalled Trader Joe’s products were sold at their stores nationwide.
The hepatitis A outbreak linked to these products has resulted in nine recorded illnesses and three hospitalizations in Oregon, Washington and California, although the total number of cases may be much higher. Illnesses usually occur within 15 to 50 days after eating food contaminated with the hepatitis A virus, although some people may not have any symptoms of infection. Symptoms often include fatigue, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, jaundice, dark urine and pale stool. For individuals that have been exposed to hepatitis A, a vaccine can be given within two weeks of exposure to prevent infection.
The second set of recalls is related to products potentially contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. These recalled products include Great Value Mixed Fruit, Great Value Dark Sweet Cherries and Great Value Mango Chunks sold at stores in 29 states including Oregon, Idaho and Montana; Whole Foods 365 Organic Tropical Fruit Medley, 365 Organic Pineapple Chunks, 365 Pineapple Chunks, 365 Organic Whole Strawberries, 365 Organic Sliced Strawberries and Bananas, and 365 Organic Blackberries sold at select stores across the US; Target’s Good & Gather Organic Cherries and Berries Fruit Blend, Good & Gather Dark Sweet Whole Pitted Cherries, Good & Gather Mango Strawberry Blend, Good & Gather Mixed Fruit Blend, Good & Gather Mango Chunks, Good & Gather Blueberries and Good & Gather Triple Berry Blend sold at their stores nationwide; Cadia Organic Pineapple sold in Oregon and other states; and Trader Joe’s Organic Tropical Fruit Blend sold at select stores nationwide.
Although the Listeria recalls have not appeared to result in any illnesses so far, these recalls were initiated on June 21 and future illness is possible. Listeria is especially concerning because the fatality rate is 20%-30% in individuals who show severe symptoms of illness. Symptoms may include fever, muscle aches, fatigue, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and seizures. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, infection in pregnant individuals can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery or life-threatening infection in newborns.
Consumers, restaurants and retailers should not sell, serve or eat any of the recalled products. Consumers should check their freezers for these products and throw them away.
A complete list of products recalled for hepatitis A can be found on the Food and Drug Administration’s website at bit.ly/46zdx8r. A list of products being recalled for Listeria can be found at bit.ly/3CHNCh3 and bit.ly/3JSUv39.
All food recalls can be found on the FDA’s website at fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts. You can also sign up to receive notification of any new food recalls through this link.
Smith is an assistant professor and statewide consumer food specialist for Washington State University. She can be reached at food.safety@wsu.edu. If you have a food safety question you would like to see in this column, send your question to us at food.safety@wsu.edu
