On Friday, Los Angeles County public health officials named a San Diego company as one of two companies behind the latest confirmed case of hepatitis A, bringing the tally of infections to at least eight. in an outbreak that has so far affected two states.
California Splendor Inc. of Otay Mesa voluntarily recalled four-pound bags of frozen strawberries imported from Baja California last month.
The other company has been identified as the Scenic Fruit Co. of Gresham, Oregon, which was also involved in importing the contaminated fruit identified as a cause of the outbreak. Scenic Fruit also issued a specific product recall in March.
“If consumers have purchased the recalled frozen organic strawberries and have eaten these berries within the past two weeks, and have not been vaccinated for hepatitis A, they should immediately consult their healthcare practitioner,” the statement said. Los Angeles County Public Health Department in a Friday. Press release.
The berries distributed by California Splendor were marketed under the Kirkland Signature brand of frozen organic whole strawberries and sold at Costco stores in Los Angeles and Hawaii, as well as two business centers in San Diego. Costco operates two business centers in San Diego County, one in Kearny Mesa and the other in San Marcos.
Specific batch numbers related to the outbreak are available on the United States Food and Drug Administration website.
California Splendor officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment or an update on the recall they issued last month. A statement on the company’s website advises customers to seek out more information about the public health threat.
“We care deeply about the health and well-being of consumers,” the statement said before directing readers to FDA websites for additional recall details and when to contact a healthcare professional.
Frozen strawberries distributed by Scenic Fruit have been sold at Costco, Aldi, KeHE, Vital Choice Seafood and in tropical berry mixes marketed by Trader Joe’s, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said.
Officials directed concerned customers at these stores to check with the FDA for more information on specific lots.
To date, the hepatitis A outbreak has been localized to sites in California and Washington State. As of April 7, a total of seven cases had been identified, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Los Angeles County case identified on Friday would be the eighth recorded infection from eating contaminated fruit.
Hepatitis A is a liver infection caused by a highly contagious virus. It is usually spread from person to person through fecal-oral contact or by ingesting contaminated food or water.
Seemingly unrelated to the federally recognized outbreak, San Diego County public health officials have seen at least 11 cases of hepatitis A in recent weeks.
In February, local public health officials identified five cases and warned of a possible larger outbreak. But the warnings have yet to lead to a wider outbreak.
Last month, local authorities had identified a total of 11 cases in San Diego County.
At least seven of these cases have been recorded among homeless people – a population particularly vulnerable to hepatitis A infections due, among other things, to a lack of access to public toilets.
“We are monitoring very carefully to see if there is anything we can find that is in common, such as location or foods,” said Dr Seema Shah, medical director of the epidemiology and disease unit. county vaccination, to the San Diego Union-Tribune last month. .
“But as it stands, it’s just a slow number of cases and not yet a significant increase,” she said.
Mayor Todd Gloria recently installed more handwashing stations in and around downtown San Diego, but did not install new public bathrooms.
In 2017, 20 people died and hundreds more were sickened in San Diego County from hepatitis A infections, one of the nation’s largest outbreaks in many years.
This outbreak has largely affected homeless people living in downtown San Diego.
A suite report from the California state auditor found that numerous missteps by San Diego city and county officials had exacerbated the crisis.
“By applying lessons learned from the outbreak, the state, county, and city can ensure they are better positioned to respond effectively to similar situations in the future,” the audit said.
In most cases, symptoms of hepatitis A include fever, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain. Patients may also experience jaundice and dark colored urine.
Symptoms can last two months or more, public health officials said. They also said there is no specific antiviral treatment, although vaccination is the best way to prevent infections.
Patients are generally susceptible to disease for two weeks after exposure.