The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated their investigation into the hepatitis A outbreak associated with Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant blend frozen berry and pomegranate mix. As of June 24, 2013, 120 people are confirmed ill with acute hepatitis. The patients live in eight states. The one case reported from Wisconsin, a new state in the outbreak, was exposed to the product in California. But it’s possible that person has spread the virus before he or she knew about the illness.
The case count is as follows: Arizona (16), California (62), Colorado (24), Hawaii (5), New Mexico (5), Nevada (5), Utah (2), and Wisconsin (1). Seventy people in this outbreak are women. Most people (61%) are between the ages of 40 and 64. Illness onset dates range from 3/31/13 to 6/14/13. Fifty four ill persons have been hospitalized. All those who have become ill and reported eating the recalled berry mix purchased it from Costco markets. All of the five children who have been sickened in this outbreak were not previously vaccinated against hepatitis A.
If you purchased this product and touched it or ate it, contact your health care provider for advice on either getting the hepatitis A or immune globulin vaccine or monitoring yourself for symptoms of the disease. Hepatitis A is a human disease and usually occurs when someone with the virus prepares food for others without proper hand hygiene. Food can be contaminated with hepatitis A and can cause outbreaks.
