The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Albion Fisheries Ltd. are warning the public not to consume certain oysters described below as they may be linked to a Vibriosis outbreak.
The oysters affected by this alert were harvested from the Hood Canal 5 growing area in Washington state between July_31 and August_20, 2007.
These oysters were imported to British Columbia and mainly distributed to food service establishments. They were also sold from the following retail stores.
Cowichan Bay Seafood,
1751 Cowichan Bay Road,
Cowichan Bay, BC
Wholefoods Market,
Village at Park Royal,
West Vancouver, B.C.
Hooked on Seafood,
1951 Harvey Ave.,
Kelowna, B.C.
Ahoy Anchors Fresh Fish and Seafood,
1709 South Nicholson Street,
Prince George, B.C.
Hung Win Seafood Ltd.,
585 Gore Avenue,
Vancouver, B.C.
Seafood City,
1689 Johnson Street,
Vancouver, B.C.
The importer, Albion Fisheries Ltd., Vancouver, British Columbia, is voluntarily recalling these oysters from the marketplace. The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of this recall.
The Washington State Department of Health has reported that these oysters have been linked to Vibriosis outbreak in USA. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these oysters in Canada.
Vibriosis is caused by a naturally occurring bacterium, Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Symptoms include watery diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, headache, fever, and chills. Symptoms usually appear about 12-24 hours after eating infected shellfish. Severe illness is rare and occurs more commonly in persons with weakened immune systems.
For more information, consumers and industry can call one of the following numbers:
Albion Fisheries Ltd., Michelle Argue at 604-875-9424 ext. 357.
The CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 / TTY 1-800-465-7735 (8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Eastern time, Monday to Friday).