Shellfish lovers in nine states are being told to check the menu twice. The FDA on Monday warned that some raw oysters and Manila clams may be contaminated with norovirus and were distributed to restaurants and retailers in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New York, Oregon, and Washington, NBC News reports. The alert covers specific batches of raw oysters harvested in Washington by Drayton Harbor Oyster Company and Manila clams harvested by the Lummi Indian Business Council between Feb. 13 and March 3.
The agency is telling retailers and restaurants not to serve or sell the implicated shellfish and to discard them or arrange for their destruction through distributors. It also flagged the risk of cross-contamination if the products came into contact with processing equipment or surfaces used for other food. According to the FDA, eating contaminated shellfish can trigger norovirus symptoms, including vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, stomach pain, fever, headache, body aches, dizziness, and dehydration, within 13 to 48 hours, with most cases resolving in one to three days.
The Lummi council had already issued its own advisory Friday, warning of possible norovirus in shellfish from Drayton Harbor and urging people not to eat them raw, though it did not declare a formal recall. The Washington State Department of Health has halted all shellfish harvesting in the harbor until at least March 24, KUOW reports. "Shellfish harvesting is both an important economic activity and a cultural tradition for our Lummi people," said Teresa Taylor, interim director of the council's Office of Economic Policy. "While closures like the one in Drayton Harbor can impact harvesters and businesses, these precautionary steps help ensure the long-term health of the resource and maintain public confidence in the safety of our shellfish."
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