France: Contaminated oysters behind several recent outbreaks

Fresh Oyster

Seafood

France

Published Jan 26, 2023

Tridge summary

Oysters from different sources have been linked to illnesses in several countries in recent weeks. There have been several product withdrawals and recalls plus the closure of production zones in France due to the detection of norovirus. When announcing the closure of harvesting areas, French authorities reported illnesses but did not say how many and Santé publique France has yet to provide information on cases to Food Safety News.

Original content

The problem and the impact on producers has been raised in the French Senate with politicians saying 15 production areas have been closed. They asked what measures the government intended to take to support the sector in the current situation and to prevent future seasonal contaminations. Recall notices of some oysters due to norovirus have been published by agencies in Belgium and Luxembourg. Danish situation Two outbreaks in Denmark have been caused by shellfish. The first with 19 people sick involves oysters from France but originating in Ireland. The second with 73 cases has been linked to oysters from Norway. Nikolas Kühn Hove, head of crises management at the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, said it was still early in the investigation. “The majority of cases fell sick one to four days after consumption on 31 December. Age range and gender information is still pending. Based on the preliminary investigations, Norovirus is suspected as the agent for the two ...

Source: Foodsafetynews