WASHINGTON, D.C. — People love enoki mushrooms to put in soups and stir-fries because of the exotic texture and taste. Enoki mushrooms are easily identified as small, skinny, and white mushrooms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now says that an outbreak of Listeria is linked to these tiny mushrooms. The Listeria outbreak […]
Enoki mushrooms fatalities
WASHINGTON, D.C. — People love enoki mushrooms to put in soups and stir-fries because of the exotic texture and taste. Enoki mushrooms are easily identified as small, skinny, and white mushrooms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now says that an outbreak of Listeria is linked to these tiny mushrooms. The Listeria outbreak has swept across the United States and infected people in at least 17 states, according to Modern Farmer. Besides, at least four people have died due to a Listeria infection. Moreover, dozens of people have been hospitalized due to illnesses associated with a Listeria infection after eating enoki mushrooms.
The food vendor, Sun Hong Foods, based out of California, announced a plan to recall all of the enoki mushrooms sold up until March 9. The mushrooms grow in South Korea. Sun Hong Foods said that the recalled enoki mushrooms are packaged in a clear, plastic bag with a green label identifying the contents as enoki mushrooms.
The mushrooms contaminated by Listeria were shipped nationwide. Listeria infections have spread from Hawaii to California and across the county to the east coast.
The contamination is severe. Thirty people required hospitalization because of a Listeria infection, two people died, and two pregnant women miscarried as a consequence of eating the contaminated mushrooms.
The cause of the Listeria outbreak is still under investigation by the CDC. Until more is known, the CDC recommends that people avoid enoki mushrooms, which bear the label “Product of Korea.”
Listeriosis, which is the disease caused by a Listeria infection, causes symptoms like muscle aches, fever, and stomach problems. Generally, health people may fall sick, but the illness should be temporary and non-life threatening. The people who fall into the highest risk category are those who are older, have immunity problems, and pregnant women whose fetuses are at an elevated risk for miscarriage.
