Walmart shrimp may have been exposed to radioactive material, says FDA
A Walmart store. (David Paul Morris / Bloomberg via Getty Images file)
The Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday that the public should avoid eating certain frozen shrimp that are sold at Walmart, since the seafood may have been contaminated with radioactive material.
In a press release, health officers said that reports on the contamination of Caesium-137 (CS-137) examined in ship containers and frozen shrimp products processed by an Indonesian company PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati from Indonesia, also known as BMS Food.
Some of the Roh -Frozen products processed by an Indonesian company are sold in the Walmart shops in thirteen countries, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia, according to The FDA.
The products include Walmart’s “Great Value brand Frozen Shrimp,” said the health authority.
“If you recently bought raw frozen shrimp from Walmart that meet this description, throw them away,” said the FDA. “Eat or do not serve this product.”
Health officers advised people to speak to their health service providers if they believe that they were exposed to an increased level of impurities.
Pt. Bahari Makmur Sejati and Walmart have not returned any inquiries about comments.
CS-137 is the radioactive form of caesium, “a soft, flexible, silver metal that becomes liquid near room temperatures”, which, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, is used for medical devices and measuring devices.
A repeated exposure to low CS-137 doses can increase the risk of cancer “as a result of damage to the DNA in living body cells,” said health officials in their press release.
The FDA said that the US Customs & Border Protection alerted the health authority to the detection of CS-137 in shipping tales in Los Angeles, Houston, Savannah and Miami. It is said that all containers and products that have been positively tested for CS-137 have been refused to enter the country.
Health officers also warned that they did not find CS-137 in any product about the currently derived intervention level for CS-137 of 1200 BQ/kg.
However, the FDA said that “the level recognized in the breaded shrimp sample could be a potential health problem” if it is combined with radiation in the environment or from medical interventions.
This article was originally published on nbcnews.com