Enoki mushrooms were being recalled from stores by Sun Hong Foods, Inc. as four people have been reported dead and 32 has fallen ill of listeria after consuming the product in an outbreak across 17 states, Monday. This listeria outbreak happens amidst the coronavirus outbreak which is recently considered a pandemic by the World Health Organization.
The recall statement released by the distributor of the contaminated mushrooms which is based in California stated that the mushrooms were imported from Korea and were distributed in California, Oregon, Texas, Washington, Florida, and Illinois.
The Food and Drug Administration has also announced the recommendation that people should not consume the mushrooms after its recent investigation has found that people have been sickened across 17 states by the product since 2016. It was also reported that at least 30 of 32 people that have been sick were hospitalized.
The four recorded deaths were from California, New Jersey, and Hawaii.
Sun Hong Foods immediately recalled its product after the mushrooms tested positive for the bacteria that causes listeria after tests conducted by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Listeria is caused by consuming food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria that has the ability to survive and multiply at extremely low temperatures like 0°C which is the typical refrigeration temperature of food, thus it is easily spread and hard to control.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people infected with listeria exhibits symptoms including fever, muscle aches, loss of balance or sense of equilibrium, headaches, nausea and diarrhea. The bacteria's incubation period is about 1-4 weeks. Hence, symptoms are usually observed on the patients within a month after eating the contaminated food.
The risk of infection is highest in the elderly, newborns, people with weakened immune systems or chronic diseases, and pregnant women. Women bearing typically only exhibit flu-like symptoms and fever but the infection can lead to birth disorders, stillbirth, premature delivery, miscarriage or complications after the child is born.
So far, the CDC has reported that there have been six pregnant women who have been diagnosed with listeria after consuming the contaminated enoki mushrooms.
FDA and the CDC has recommended that until more information is gathered about the mushrooms, how they were contaminated and how they were distributed, all high-risk groups should avoid consuming enoki mushrooms from Korea. It was also advised that people should stop eating enoki mushrooms if they do not know the origin of the product.
It was also advised that restaurants and homes who have previously acquired the mushrooms from their fridges should thoroughly clean the surfaces that have been touched by the mushroom since it can survive in fridge temperature.
The listeria cases in the United States broke out amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has alerted the healthcare sector. The US has already 1,000 cases reported and 31 deaths from the coronavirus which has already taken its toll on the economy and healthcare sector.
As of the moment, the novel coronavirus has infected more than 115,800 people across 102 countries and territories and has killed more than 4,200 world wide.