Norovirus Illnesses Linked to Oysters From British Columbia Bay
Health officials in the United States are warning consumers not to eat raw oysters harvested from a specific bay in British Columbia, Canada, after linking norovirus illnesses in Minnesota, Washington, and other states to the oysters.
Twenty-nine Minnesotans have been sickened by oysters in this Norovirus outbreak. They became ill with confirmed or suspected norovirus gastroenteritis after eating raw oysters at Travail Kitchen in Robbinsdale on March 20. The oysters served were Stellar Bay Gold oysters harvested on March 10 from Deep Bay in British Columbia, Canada.
An investigation by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) into the norovirus outbreak has led to numerous oyster recalls.
According to the CFIA, as of March 30, 2022, there have been 279 cases of norovirus and gastrointestinal illness in Canada linked to consumption of B.C. oysters reported in the following provinces: B.C. (262), Alberta (1), Saskatchewan (1), and Ontario (15).
The Minnesota Department of Health, Hennepin County Public Health, and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture are working with federal officials and public health agencies in other states and Canada to investigate norovirus illnesses associated with oysters harvested from Bay 14-8 in British Columbia.
“Travail Kitchen quickly brought the cases to our attention, and immediately stopped serving oysters,” said Duane Hudson, Hennepin County Public Health, Environmental Health manager. “We are grateful to Travail for their help in protecting the public from foodborne illnesses.”
Officials are urging restaurants and distributors to check shellstock tags and discard oysters from this harvest area. Consumers can ask oyster suppliers or restaurants to check the shellstock tag for the harvest location.
Norovirus illnesses in Washington
Since March 13, there have been a reported 27 illnesses connected to the consumption of raw oysters in the Seattle and King County area. Public Health routinely reports the illnesses to Washington State Department of Health (DOH) Shellfish Program, which is responsible for tracking the harvest locations of the oysters implicated in these illnesses.
As of now, there has not been any confirmation that the oysters came from Deep Bay in British Columbia, Canada.
About norovirus infections
People with norovirus illness usually develop symptoms of gastroenteritis within 24 to 48 hours, but symptoms can start as early as 12 hours after exposure.
The illness often begins suddenly. Even after having the illness, you can still become re-infected by norovirus. The main symptoms of norovirus illness are diarrhea, vomiting (children usually experience more vomiting than adults), nausea and stomach cramps.
Other symptoms may include low-grade fever, headache, chills, muscle aches and fatigue (a general sense of tiredness). Most people feel better within one or two days, with symptoms resolving on their own, and experience no long-term health effects. As with any illness causing diarrhea or vomiting, people who are ill should drink plenty of liquids to replace lost body fluids and prevent dehydration. In severe cases, patients may need to be hospitalized and given fluids intravenously.
Source: Food Safety News, “Norovirus outbreak linked to oysters from B.C. sickens people in Minnesota, Washington,” April 1, 2022.
TapRooT® wins food safety software award
We are excited to share that System Improvements, Inc., creator of the TapRooT® System, is recognized as a top food safety solution provider by Food & Beverage Technology Review.
TapRooT® helps food and beverage companies get to the root causes of food safety issues as well as improving industrial safety in the production facilities.
Read more here about TapRooT® and food safety.
Register for a TapRooT® Root Cause Analysis training course
TapRooT® Root Cause Analysis Training courses are taught all over the world. If you are interested in learning how to stop repeat incidents, find a 2-day or 5-day course. We are available to train you and your staff on-site at your workplace; contact us to discuss your needs. You may also call us at 865.539.2139.
Attend the best conference for smart workers and safe clients: The 2022 Global TapRooT® Summit
There’s a good reason why, since 1994, hundreds of companies make it a priority to send experts and /teams to the Global TapRooT® Summit: The attendees bring back game-changing information and tips on how their companies can improve performance while keeping their record clean and their employees and clients working safe and all on the same page. You should, too.
In 1994, we started the TapRooT® Summit as a three-day meeting of the best TapRooT® users. The Summit has grown into an international event with world-renowned speakers and multiple tracks designed to share performance improvement best practices across industries and professions.
This year, come to beautiful East Tennessee for the best conference you can attend. We’ll be in Knoxville, Tennessee, May 2-6, listening and learning from the best of the best:
Learn more about the Summit from the brochure and the schedule.
Register now for the 2022 Global TapRooT® Summit and bring your team. You’ll be glad you did.
