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The Food and Drug Administration is launching an investigation into over a dozen cases of hepatitis A that may be linked to fresh strawberries. The agency has identified 17 cases in California, Minnesota, and North Dakota and said that 12 of the patients had to be taken to the hospital.
The FDA said that organic strawberries were sold under the brand names FreshKampo and HEB and were shipped to grocery stores across the country, including Aldi, HEB, Kroger, Safeway, Sprouts Farmers Market, Trader Joe's, Walmart, Weis Markets, and WinCo Foods.
The strawberries were purchased between March 5 and April 25 and are past their expiration date. The FDA warned anybody who may have frozen the affected strawberries to discard them.
"If you are unsure of what brand you purchased, when you purchased your strawberries, or where you purchased them from prior to freezing them, the strawberries should be thrown away," the FDA said.
Symptoms of hepatitis A usually develop between two to seven weeks after exposure and include yellow skin or eyes, lack of appetite, vomiting, stomach pain, fever, dark urine, light-colored stools, diarrhea, joint pain, and fatigue. In some cases, symptoms can last for up to six months.