More than 1,000 cases of frozen raspberries are recalled after testing indicated the presence of hepatitis A, federal health officials say.
According to a notice posted by the Food and Drug Administration FDA FDA on Wednesday, James Farm frozen raspberries with UPC code 76069501010 and Lot code 22 165 are included in the recall due to the possibility that they are contaminated with Hepatitis A, a contagious liver disease that comes from exposure to the hepatitis A virus.
The recall notice said that the recalled product was sold exclusively through Restaurant Depot Jetro locations in nine states, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.
The consumer that purchased the affected product should either discard them or return them to the point of sale place of purchase for a full refund, the recall notice continued.
There haven't been any illnesses or adverse reactions to the recalled product, officials say.
The notice said that people can suffer from mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious illness lasting several months.
The notice said a number of symptoms include fatigue, abdominal pain, jaundice, abnormal liver tests, dark urine and pale stool. A hepatitis A vaccine can prevent illness if it's given within two weeks of being exposed to contaminated food.
In rare cases, especially consumers who have a pre-existing severe illness or are immune compromised, Hepatitis A infection can lead to liver failure, officials said.
There have been a number of hepatitis A outbreaks linked to berries in recent years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC. This includes a multi-state outbreak of hepatitis A infections linked to frozen strawberries in 2016 and a multi-state outbreak linked to organic strawberries this year, according to CDC data.
In the latest case, 19 people in four states were infected and 13 were hospitalized, according to the CDC.