Radioactive shrimp: 83,800 frozen products recalled in the United States for risk of cesium 137 contamination

Many Americans had to make do without shrimp for their Christmas meal. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered a massive recall on December 19 of 83,800 bags of frozen raw shrimp caught in Indonesia due to a risk of contamination by a radioactive substance, ABC reported this Wednesday, December 24.

These shrimp, sold under the Market 32 ​​and Waterfront Bistro brands, may have been prepared, packaged or stored in unsanitary conditions, which could have contaminated them with cesium 137 (Cs-137). Discovered in 1941 by Glenn T. Seaborg and Margaret Melhase, it is one of several fission products of uranium and exhibits radioactivity.

The 83,800 packages subject to the recall have been sold since the end of June in multiple supermarket chains across the United States: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Colorado, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Montana, North Dakota, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming are targeted by this procedure. Already in August, a first recall for shrimp from the same Indonesian distributor took place at the initiative of Walmart supermarkets and the FDA.

Throw away or return products to the store

Traces of Cs-137 may be present in the environment on a marginal basis, but at higher levels in water or foods grown, raised, or produced in contaminated areas. The primary health effect following repeated exposure to low doses over a long period of time (for example, through consumption of contaminated food or water over time) is an increased risk of cancer, resulting from DNA damage in living cells in the body, the FDA points out.

The institution specified that it was “actively investigating reports of Cs-137 contamination in shipping containers and frozen shrimp products produced in Indonesia” by the manufacturer in question. No cases of contamination have yet been reported to the authorities, but consumers are asked to throw away or return the affected products to the store. These have no link with the French or European market.