Food safety regulatory agencies in the United States and Canada are investigating an outbreak of Hepatitis A possibly linked to contaminated organic strawberries, which has afflicted 17 people in the United States and 10 in Canada, according to the agencies.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, California disclosed fifteen illnesses, while Minnesota and North Dakota disclosed one illness each. 12 of the sick individuals were hospitalized, according to the FDA, which did not elaborate.
Between March 5 and April 25, the produce was in stores under the brand names FreshKampo or HEB, according to a late Saturday statement from the FDA.
“People who purchased the fresh strawberries and then froze those strawberries for later consumption should not eat them. They should be thrown away,” it said.
“Based on investigation findings to date, consumption of imported fresh organic strawberries is the likely source of the outbreak,” the agencies said in a statement.
