If You Have Any of These 16 Kinds of Fish in Your Freezer, Throw Them Out
A follow-up on an FDA recall finds that 155 samples tested positive for dangerous bacteria.
Whether it's fruit, veggies, meat, or prepared meals, keeping your freezer stocked with food is a great way to be sure you always have certain items on hand. But if you've stocked up on seafood recently, you may want to think twice before using it in your next meal. That's because one company has recalled 16 types of fish due to a potentially dangerous bacterial contamination. Read on to see which items in your freezer you should be throwing out immediately.
RELATED: If You Bought This at Kroger or Walmart, Throw It Away Now, FDA Says.
Denver-based Northeast Seafood Products has recalled 16 types of fish from its lineup sold in grocery stores.
On Oct. 8, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that Denver-based Northeast Seafood Products had issued a voluntary recall on 16 of its fish products. The listed items include Haddock, Monkfish, Bone-in Trout, Grouper, Red Snapper, Red Rock Cod, Ocean Perch, Pacific Cod, Halibut, Coho Salmon, Atlantic Salmon Portions, Lane Snapper, Tilapia, All Natural Salmon Fillet, Pacific Sole, and Farm-Raised Striped Bass.
All of the recalled items were sold from May 2021 to October 7, 2021, out of fresh seafood cases at Albertsons, Safeway, and Sprouts supermarkets in Colorado. The notice also clarified that Pacific Cod sold through Sprouts was not included in the recall.
The recalled fish could be contaminated with Salmonella.
The FDA warns that the recalled fish products were processed at a facility where they could have been contaminated with Salmonella bacteria, which can cause serious or potentially fatal illnesses when ingested. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, 155 cases had been identified as part of the outbreak as of Nov. 16, Food Safety News reports.
According to a warning released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Oct. 8, 102 illnesses across 14 states linked to the contaminated products had been reported up until that point, including 19 hospitalizations. Many of those patients reported having eaten raw or cooked seafood from grocery stores or restaurants where Northeast Seafood Products is a regular supplier before becoming sick. While the freshness date has passed for the products, the agency warns that customers or restaurants could still have the seafood stored in their freezers.
RELATED: If You Have Any of These 6 Supplements, Throw Them Out Now, FDA Warns.
The CDC advises anyone with the recalled fish to throw it away immediately.
In its warning, the CDC advises that anyone who has the recalled products in their freezer not to eat them and to throw them out immediately or return them to where they purchased them. It recommends any customer who is unsure if the fish products they bought from an Albertsons, Safeway, or Sprouts grocery store in Colorado is from Northeast Seafood Products should also not eat them and throw them away immediately. Customers should also wash any surfaces or items that may have come in contact with the recalled fish with hot soapy water or run it through the dishwasher.
The CDC warns you to call your doctor if you notice any symptoms of salmonella poisoning.
In its recall notice, the FDA says that healthy people infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea that can be bloody, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. However, they warn that in rare cases, salmonella poisoning can "result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis, and arthritis."
The CDC says that most people will usually first see symptoms of salmonella poisoning anywhere between six hours to six days after they've ingested the bacteria and recover without treatment in four to seven days. However, you should still call your doctor if you notice any severe symptoms, including diarrhea and a fever higher than 102 degrees Fahrenheit, diarrhea for more than three days that is not improving, bloody diarrhea, excess vomiting that prevents you from keeping liquids down, and signs of dehydration such as reduced urination, dry mouth and throat, and dizziness when standing up.
"Some people—especially children younger than five years, adults 65 years and older, and people with weakened immune systems—may experience more severe illnesses that require medical treatment or hospitalization," the CDC warns.
RELATED: Over 10,000 Pounds of Meat From This Company Are Being Recalled, USDA Says.
