Ten people have contracted hepatitis A from frozen berries

• published: 18 Feb 2015
• views: 3

Ten people have contracted hepatitis A from frozen berries Ten people have now contracted hepatitis A and experts are warning that imported frozen berry produce from certain parts of the world carry serious risks Rivers so toxic they run with red and purple water, oceans blooming with thick algae caused by industrial waste, reservoirs teeming with rubbish and polluted lakes filled with dead fish. These are the photographs that show the shocking levels of pollution in China, where food regulators struggle to enforce hygiene standards for food exported to Australia. A range of Nanna's and Creative Gourmet brand frozen berry products, sourced from China, have been recalled after they were linked to at least 13 Hepatitis A cases across Australia. It has been revealed the frozen berries which were recently recalled after links to hepatitis A, are from the Shandong province in east China, the Daily Telegraph reports. This is one of China's most polluted areas, with cities and villages in Shandong reportedly plagued by chemical and industrial waste pollution and farming land laying adjacent to factories and petrochemical plants. One river running through the village of Jinling is so polluted by nearby chemical factories that the water is red coloured and has a foul smell, according to local Chinese reports. Images of the area show a river in Jinling running with water coloured red and purple. Another image shows a young boy swimming in the algae-filled coastline of Qingdao, in Shandong, where industrial and agricultural pollution has caused annual algal blooms. On Wednesday, the first case of hepatitis A believed to be related to contaminated frozen berries was confirmed in Western Australia, adding to at least 12 other confirmed cases across Australia. The Australian Red Cross Blood Service has banned people who have eaten the recalled berries from donating blood for two months as a precaution against the spread of hepatitis A. And a number of Wests Tigers NRL players who have consumed the product in the past few weeks have consulted the club doctor with health concerns, although there are no confirmed Hepatitis A cases on the team. Players will be monitored for the next few weeks. WHAT TO DO IF YOU THINK YOU HAVE EATEN CONTAMINATED FROZEN BERRIES Communicable Disease Control director Paul Armstrong said there was no need for people who had eaten the products and remained well to see their doctor for testing or vaccination. Symptoms of hepatitis A can start two to seven weeks after exposure to an infectious person or after eating contaminated food. Early symptoms are fever, nausea, loss of appetite and abdominal discomfort. After several days jaundice can develop, with yellowing of the whites of the eyes and skin, dark urine and pale stools, sometimes accompanied by diarrhoea. Dr Armstrong said anyone who experience symptoms should see their doctor, especially if they had eaten the berries. Federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce has urged consumers to buy Australian produce and Independent Senator Nick Xenophon has called for an urgent review into Australia's imported food safety checks. A consumer-led Change.org petition calling for accurate information on packaging indicating where imported food comes from has received more than 17,000 signatures. Food microbiology expert Dr Said Ajlouni said he had run workshops about Australian food regulations for Chinese delegates and manufacturing executives, who indicated that controlling safety and hygiene standards in the country's rapidly growing food industry was a struggle. 'From talking to individuals they are struggling a lot to control the appropriate safety and hygiene measures, and provide enough supervision to ensure these manufacturers follow the hygiene practices,' said Dr Ajlouni, from the University of Melbourne. 'China is a huge country and controlling every individual manufacturing company has been difficult, that is the message I got.' Dr Ajlouni said Australian importers needed to take more responsibility for food safety checks in China. 'As Australian importers we should be more pro-active and visit and see exactly what's happening during manufacturing in China,' he said. 'Don't take for granted the certificate you receive with the produce.' Dr Ajlouni added that the cause of the 'dangerous' Hepatitis A contamination needed to be found urgently. 'If the processing not done well we will face similar problems in the future,' he said. 'This is why I have been emphasising again and again that we need to identify the route of the problem. 'Was it inappropriate personal hygiene, inappropriate use of dirty water, something dirty in manufacturing area?