CDC Recalls Raw Tuna In Some Sushi Products After TX Salmonella Cases
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Following 316 salmonella cases in 26 states, the Center for Disease Control last week issued a recall on a brand of ground tuna that's found in sushi products often sold as 'spicy tuna.'
Four of those cases happened in Texas between Jan. 28 and May 3, according to CDC statistics. The product in question is Raw Scraped Ground Tuna, a frozen raw yellowfin tuna product sold as Nakaochi Scrape by the Moon Marine USA Corporation.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based business voluntarily recalled nearly 60,000 pounds of the tuna, the CDC says. The ground tuna is actually tuna back meat that's scraped off the bones and then often formed into frozen blocks.
Companies scrape the meat, they say, because tuna is too expensive to waste. This product is not treated with ammonia or any other chemical –– it's FDA approved and supposed to be safe.
On March 8, Texas became the first state to have a cluster of eaters become ill after eating at the same Japanese restaurant, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
A week later, Wisconsin reported the same incident at a Japanese restaurant there, and the CDC launched its investigation.
"Preliminary information from 22 ill persons revealed that in the week before illness 80 percent reported eating seafood and 55 percent reported eating sushi," results from a March 16 CDC test reads.
These numbers jumped as the weeks went on: On March 27, 90 percent of the 29 newly ill individuals reported eating sushi and 81 percent of those said they had spicy tuna.
On April 13, Moon Marine USA recalled three production dates of the fish. An import alert was issued the next day, and on April 24, the CDC traced the salmonella to a fishery in India and found the strain in unopened packages of the yellowfin tuna packages.
The company expanded its recall on May 10, including 22-pound boxes of "Tuna Strips" that were marked as either AA or AAA grade.
"The product has the potential to be contaminated with salmonella," the CDC wrote.
In addition to sushi and sashimi, sickened individuals also reported eating ceviche. The CDC has asked restaurants to stop serving the product in question. For those that don't know where it came from, check with the supplier, the CDC advises.
Customers are suggested to ask the restaurant or grocer which company supplied the tuna before eating it.
Other states with salmonella cases linked to the yellowfin include Alabama, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Thirty-six people have been hospitalized nationwide, none of whom have died.
