Pomegranates blamed for Hepatitis A outbreak
Beware of frozen pomegranates. That’s the warning from New South Wales Health after seven locally acquired cases were linked to imported products sold in Coles supermarkets.
Another three cases are still under investigation.
NSW Health issued a warning last Friday advising people who bought the frozen fruit from Coles not to eat it.
Genetic testing revealed a unique strain of Hepatitis A in people who had eaten the product.
As a result, NSW Health confirmed a precautionary recall of the Creative Gourmet-branded frozen fruit on Saturday.
“Consumers with this product in their freezers should not consume it and should return the product to the place of purchase for a refund,” NSW Food Authority CEO Dr Lisa Szabo said in a statement.
On the same day, Entyce Food Ingredients issued a statement identifying the potential culprit as Creative Gourmet Frozen Pomegranate (180g).
Its website confirmed there had been a “precautionary recall of a relatively small batch” of the frozen pomegranate. The company said it will offer full refunds.
“Consumers can be confident that the recalled product Creative Gourmet Frozen Pomegranate Arils 180g is an isolated one and no other Creative Gourmet products are affected,” it said in the statement.
“The recall affects less than one per cent of the Creative Gourmet fruit sold annually in Australia.”
Coles also issued a statement saying customers could return the products to the supermarket for a refund and to seek medical advice if they were concerned about their health.
Hepatitis A symptoms take 15 to 50 days to develop. They include nausea, vomiting, fever and yellowing of the skin, dark urine and pale stools.
Hepatitis A is a viral liver infection which can spread in contaminated food or through poor hygiene.
“Those who have consumed the product in the past two weeks may benefit from hepatitis A vaccination, if not already protected,” Dr Vicky Sheppeard, director of communicable diseases at NSW Health said in a statement.
Leon Getler 11th April 2018.
