The RASFF community portal (Rapid Alert System Feed and Food) published an alert this week regarding the presence of hepatitis A in some strawberries imported from Morocco. This is a notification detected at a point of entry of products to Spain, within the control process that all foods entering the European Union must comply, according to current legislation.
Although associations such as the Valencian Farmers Association (AVA-ASAJA) have shown their “concern” by demanding “urgent measures” from both the Spanish Government and the European Union itself, the truth is that these types of alerts are more common than expected. that we might think, but if they do not transcend the media more often it is because they do not entail real risk for the population, except when they become alarmist news viral.
A occurred very similar case in 2018 when it even led to it quickly spreading as a hoax on social networks and messages from Whatsappwarning of a supposed danger if you ate strawberries or raspberries from Morocco because they had hepatitis A. And as the expert Gemma del Caño denied then, it was an unfounded alarm that came from another news story from previous years.
In 2018, several EU countries reported cases of hepatitis A infection, but the origin was not located. As reported by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the infection most likely occurred from person to person or through food transmission.
“The relative homogeneity of the viral strains associated with the outbreak cases suggests that foodborne transmission could be associated with a single product “food.”
The detection of this virus in fruits, especially in berries and berries, is not limited to non-EU production, as we already saw in 2022 in an alert regarding the presence of the hepatitis A virus in frozen berries from Belgium. No health case associated with it was reported.
Del Caño already explained that this virus is one of the most typical of food transmissionThat is, it is transmitted very easily through food, especially the freshest and most directly consumed, such as fifth-range vegetables that do not require washing. That is why health alerts often occur in typical salads or ready-to-eat sprouts.
All food that enters a country legally must comply with controls
But in the case of imported products the risk of poisoning may be even lower. In the words of del Caño, “all foods that enter a country legally must comply with controls and analyzes that prove they are safe”. And they recently confirmed it to Maldita from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs – in charge of controlling pests and phytosanitary products, respectively.
“A documentary control is carried out on 100% of the products that are imported. In case of suspicion If the regulations are not complied with or if there is a risk, an identity and physical control is carried out (including sample collection).”
In the alert published on the RASFF portal we verify that the presence of the virus has been detected in a border control; It is considered a high risk because it is a pathogenic microorganism that does not have a maximum limit allowed in any food. If the slightest presence is detected, the product is paralyzed.
AVA-ASAJA requests the Minister of Agriculture, Luis Planas, to “ask for explanations from the Government of Morocco and specify what measures it intends to take to prevent this type of situation from occurring again.” The strawberries in which the virus has been detected, since they have not passed the control, have not entered the marketing channels from Spain, so there is no risk for the population.
Let us remember that food alerts that may pose a danger to the consumer are notified by the AESAN and quickly transmitted between the competent regional authorities through the Coordinated System for Rapid Information Exchange (SCIRI).
Images | Unsplash/Liz Caldwell – Tim Mossholder – Brad
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