The Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday that no tainted US oysters have arrived in Taiwan and that it has not received reports of anyone falling ill as a result of eating the tainted shellfish.
The department said that after checking with several oyster importers, it was found that they had imported 23 batches, about 9,349kg, of oysters since Aug. 30, most of which were sold directly to restaurants.
“Initial investigation showed that they did not come from polluted areas. We have also not received reports of any consumers falling ill after eating imported oysters,” the department said in a statement.
The department stressed that it had stepped up inspections of imported oysters after reports that tainted oysters from the US had been sent to Taiwan.
The department said as oysters are prized for their freshness, they are not preserved long and often go to restaurants directly instead of major retail outlets.
“We’ve already stepped up checking and inspections on a batch-by-batch basis, “it added.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the US Food and Drug Administration has warned consumers not to eat oysters harvested from Washington state’s Hood Canal Area 4 between Aug. 30 and Sept. 19.
The oysters are suspected of carrying vibro parahaemolyticus, a bacterium found in brackish saltwater, and are believed to be the cause of an outbreak of illness in about five consumers, the report said.
The report said the suspect oysters have been distributed to 23 US states and various foreign countries, including Taiwan.
Local supermarkets said yesterday that they had not sold any of the suspect oysters and that most seafood sold in Taiwan is locally produced.
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