FDA Detains Turkish Pomegranate Seeds Linked to Hepatitis A Outbreak

WASHINGTON and ATLANTAThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will detain shipments of pomegranate seeds offered for import into the United States from Goknur Gida Maddeleri Ithalat Ihracat Tic [Goknur Foodstuffs Import Export Trading] of Turkey because they may be contaminated with hepatitis A.

The action results from an investigation by the FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and state and local health authorities into a multistate outbreak of Hepatitis A illnesses associated with Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend, a frozen food blend containing pomegranate seed mix.

As of June 28, 2013, 131 people in eight states have been confirmed ill with acute hepatitis A infections from reportedly eating Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend, a mix of frozen berries and pomegranate seeds sold at Costco stores. Fifty-nine people have been hospitalized; no deaths have been reported. All ill people reported purchasing this product from Costco markets; however, the product was also sold at Harris Teeter stores.

The CDC reports that the outbreak strain of Hepatitis A virus (HAV), belonging to genotype 1B, was found in clinical specimens of 56 people in seven states. This strain is rarely seen in the Americas but circulates in North Africa and the Middle East.

By combining information gained from the FDAs traceback and traceforward investigations and the CDCs epidemiological investigation, the FDA and CDC have determined that the most likely vehicle for the Hepatitis A virus appears to be a common shipment of pomegranate seeds from Goknur used by Townsend Farms to make the Townsend Farms and Harris Teeter Organic Antioxidant Blends that were recalled in June. These seeds were also used by Scenic Fruit Company to make their recently recalled Woodstock Frozen Organic Pomegranate Kernels. FDA reviewed records and determined that the pomegranate seeds from this shipment were the only ingredient common to all of the recalled Townsend Farms and Harris Teeter Organic Antioxidant Blend. 

This outbreak highlights the food-safety challenge posed by todays global food system," said Michael R. Taylor, deputy commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine. The presence in a single product of multiple ingredients from multiple countries compounds the difficulty of finding the cause of an illness outbreak. The hepatitis A outbreak shows how we have improved our ability to investigate and respond to outbreaks, but also why we are working to build a food-safety system that more effectively prevents them."

Townsend Farms already is contending with lawsuits. Most recently, the national food safety law firm of Simon & Luke, with co-counsel Gomez & Iagmin, filed a fifth California lawsuit stemming from the multi-state hepatitis A outbreak. The lawsuit was filed against Townsend Farms and Costco Corp. in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County on behalf of 52-year old Burbank, Calif., resident Greg Patterson.