In the wake of the frozen ground raw tuna recall and Salmonella Newport outbreak that is linked to Jensen Tuna, the FDA has added JK Fish of Vietnam to Import Alert 16-20 for fish from foreign processors. This lets the government detain product from that firm without any physical sampling and analysis.
The Import Alert is guidance to FDA field personnel. This applies to foreign processors and products that have failed to meet the hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) requirements for a specific product.
The government believes that the recalled ground tuna was sold to restaurants and retailers and not directly to consumers, and that it was used to make sushi and other dishes. If you choose to buy or eat sushi or any product made with uncooked raw ground tuna, ask the restauranteur or retailer where the tuna came from. If they don’t know, don’t eat it.
Nothing else about the outbreak has changed since the last update on April 16, 2019. There are still 13 people ill in seven states in this Salmonella Reading outbreak. Two people have been hospitalized because they are so sick.
The patient case count by state is: Connecticut (1), Iowa (1), Illinois (1), Minnesota (1), New York (1), North Dakota (4), and Washington (4). Illness onset dates range from January 8, 2019 to March 20, 2019. The product was distributed in Connecticut, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, and Washington state, but could have been distributed to other states as well. This outbreak may still grow, since it can take time from when a person feels sick until the illness is diagnosed and reported to public health officials.
This outbreak was connected to Jensen Tuna because the FDA used traceback to source the raw tuna used by restaurants where the ill persons said they ate sushi. Jensen Farms supplied that frozen raw ground tuna to those facilities. All of the nine people interviewed in this outbreak said they ate a sushi item containing raw tuna or raw spicy tuna that they purchased from a restaurant or a grocery store before they got sick.
The symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning include a fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, stomach and abdominal cramps, and diarrhea that may be bloody. If you ate sushi containing tuna or spicy tuna and have been ill with these symptoms, see your doctor. You may be part of this Salmonella Newport raw ground tuna outbreak.
Pritzker Hageman law firm presents and helps people who have been sickened by contaminated food such as raw ground tuna. We get answers, compensation for those who have been injured, and justice through our work. Our lawyers represent patients who have been sickened with bacterial infections in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits against retailers, importers, grocery stores, food processors, restaurants, daycare centers, schools, and others. Please note that class action lawsuits are usually not appropriate for outbreak victims because these types of cases are so unique.
