The Food and Drug Administration is urging food distributors, retailers and food service vendors to remove from the market oysters, clams, mussels and scallops imported from South Korea because of possible contamination with human waste and norovirus.
The decision follows an FDA evaluation that determined that the Korean Shellfish Sanitation program no longer meets adequate sanitation controls. The federal agency is in discussions with South Korean authorities to resolve the issue.
The sanitation program's deficiencies caused the FDA to remove five South Korean firms that shuck and pack shellfish from the Interstate Certified Shellfish Shippers List on May 1. The warning covers all fresh, frozen canned or processed mollusks from South Korea. Some contaminated fish may have entered the U.S. before May 1. International shippers on the list are included under the terms of the shellfish sanitation agreements between the FDA and the countries of origin.
An FDA spokesman, Curtis Allen, said Thursday the decision to call for the removal of the mollusks from the market was precautionary and began with an investigation into norovirus outbreaks in November and December.
"We want to ensure that all foods coming into the United States are safe for consumption," Allen said Thursday.
