Foodstuffs Own Brands Ltd is recalling a number of Pams frozen berry products due to a possible link to cases of Hepatitis A in frozen berries from Serbia. The recall affects all batches and dates ranges of the following: Pams Frozen Mixed Berries 500g, Pams Frozen Two Berry Mix 1kg, Pams Frozen Two Berry Mix 750g, Pams Frozen Smoothie Berry Mix 500g, Pams Raspberries 500g and Pams Raspberries 350g.
There are currently 12 cases of Hepatitis A in the community linked to the consumption of frozen berries, eight of them are linked by genetic sequencing, and seven have been hospitalised.
"Until and unless a definitive source is identified, this advice applies to all frozen berry products. Hepatitis A remains relatively rare in New Zealand – the 12 cases linked to frozen berries account for half of the reported cases in the country so far this year,” said Vincent Arbuckle, New Zealand Food Safety deputy director-general.
“Tracing the illness back to specific products in the case of frozen berries from imported sources is widely accepted to be a very challenging process. The 12 cases report eating a range of berries. In addition, Hepatitis A has a long incubation period – up to 50 days between consumption of the product and symptoms appearing.”
As the illness develops, symptoms of Hepatitis A include nausea, stomach pain and skin yellowing. Some people, particularly children, may not develop symptoms at all.
“We know the virus in New Zealand is a genetic match to a virus which caused illness in Sweden in 2020 and 2021. That illness had a possible link to frozen berries from Serbia.”
