Over 1,200 cases of James Farms Frozen Raspberries were voluntarily recalled by Exportadora Copramar of Chile after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) detected hepatitis A during testing.

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is an acute form of hepatitis, which means it does not cause long-term, or chronic, infection. It can be transmitted via contaminated food or water or through close contact with someone with the virus.

“In rare cases, particularly consumers who have a preexisting severe illness or are immune compromised, hepatitis A infection can progress to liver failure,” the FDA stated in an announcement about the recall.

To check whether your raspberries are part of the 1,260 potentially contaminated 10-pound cartons, look for Lot No. CO 22-165 at the bottom of the carton and the best-by date June 14, 2024.

The raspberries in question were distributed exclusively at Restaurants Depot/Jetro outlets in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.

Hep magazine’s Hepatitis A Basics offers more information on this type of virus:

Not everyone infected with HAV will experience noticeable symptoms. For example, many babies and young children infected with HAV do not experience any symptoms of infection. Symptoms are much more likely to occur in older children, adolescents and adults. If symptoms occur, they usually do so within two to four weeks after being infected. The symptoms of hepatitis A can last anywhere from a week to more than a month.

Symptoms of hepatitis A (and acute hepatitis in general) can include:

  • Yellowing of the skin, whites of the eyes and under the fingernails (jaundice);
  • Feeling tired and rundown (fatigue);
  • Pain in the upper-right abdomen;
  • Loss of appetite;
  • Weight loss;
  • Fever
  • Nausea, diarrhea or vomiting;
  • Dark urine and/or pale stool;
  • Joint pain.

It can take the immune system up to eight weeks to clear HAV from the body.

Hepatitis A can be diagnosed using blood tests. Your health care provider can order these tests if you have symptoms of hepatitis A or if you want to know whether you were infected with HAV in the past.

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