Skip to content

Western Family brand POMEBERRY BLEND berries may contain Hepatitis A virus

Canadian Food Inspection Agency News Release ******************** OTTAWA - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Overwaitea Food Group are warning the public not to consume the Western Family brand Pomeberry Blend berries described below.
Canadian Food Inspection Agency
News Release

********************

OTTAWA - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Overwaitea Food Group are warning the public not to consume the Western Family brand Pomeberry Blend berries described below. The affected product may contain Hepatitis A virus.

The affected product Western Family brand Pomeberry Blend berries is sold frozen in 600g packages bearing UPC 0 62639 31347 0. All lot codes are affected.

This product is known to have been distributed in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario and may also have been distributed to other provinces.

This recall is a result of an ongoing food safety investigation with BCCDC and regional health authorities into a number of cases of hepatitis A in British Columbia.

Food contaminated with Hepatitis A virus may not look or smell spoiled. Consumption of food contaminated with this virus may cause hepatitis and produce a self-limited disease that does not result in chronic infection or chronic liver disease. The illness is usually mild and starts about 15 to 50 days after the contaminated food is eaten. It generally goes away by itself in a week or two, although it can last up to 6 months in some people. It can cause inflammation of the liver, and symptoms may include fever, low appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, and yellowing in the whites of the eyes and the skin (jaundice).

The distributor, Overwaitea Food Group, Vancouver, British Columbia is recalling the affected product from the marketplace. The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.

For more information consumers and industry can call the CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 / TTY 1-800-465-7735 (8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday to Friday).

For information on Hepatitis A, visit the Food Facts web page at: http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/cause/hepatite.shtml

For information on all food recalls, visit the CFIA's Food Recall Report at: http://active.inspection.gc.ca/eng/corp/recarapp_dbe.asp.

To find out more about receiving recalls by e-mail, and other food safety facts, visit: www.foodsafety.gc.ca. Food and consumer product recalls are also available at http://www.healthycanadians.gc.ca.

********************