Consumers warned to throw out Nanna’s Frozen Berry 1kg packets amid hepatitis A scare
http://www.news.com.au/national/victoria/consumers-warned-to…
Had a pack of Nanna's Blueberries in the freezer. Seems to affect only the mixed berries but not taking a chance!
Some people are go getters my mum is a real go returner and would be disappointed if I didn't try. I'll report back after I have got the refund - challenge accepted.
Honestly, I returned over fifty packets on my shift yesterday. Most supervisors have no time to check use-by dates and will just refund it anyway.
You don't need a receipt when products have been recalled. Also, the 'best before' date isn't the same as an expiry date. Frozen foods are safe to eat indefinitely, it's just the quality that is affected. I would assume they would refund the box regardless of the best before date as they can still be eaten, but mostly I doubt the person at the customer service desk is going to check the dates anyway.
the recall says "All Batches up to and including …", so you could return everything (even the half eaten bag) for a full refund.
Could return one berry and get a full refund. Patties pays for it, the shop gets money for processing the recall.
Some companies get charged around $70 per item returned during a recall.
They will pay a lot.
Lawsuit anyone? Class action! $1.4M in damages per victim and $65.9M for the lawyer!
would love to know the company in China that was supplying these - or the farms.
or the farms.
I don't think you really wanna..
I guess we call them sewerage plants in Australia.
Advice is not to dispose of or return berries, but to keep them as evidence should you get sick: http://www.goodfood.com.au/good-food/food-news/frozen-berrie…
i don't think there is any point in keeping unopened bags.
Open them and pretend you ate some. Your resulting anxiety condition is surely worth 50k in the class action.
This is a disgrace I feel sorry for the poor people have contracted the disease.
The most important thing is it is purely a precautionary recall, the state government has not confirmed it.
They are still testing the berries to see if they are in fact the infected.
It says 3 vic, 4 qld and 1 nsw contracted it from the berries.
Precautionary, nothing is confirmed.
Not saying it's not the case. But they are still testing the berries. So no way of proving it.
thanks.
ugh i finished a blueberries bag from nanna's about last week ago. i'm probably going to die.
RIP
'A Total Eklipze of the Heart Liver'…
Actually - probably not…
Hep A doesn't usually cause any chronic liver problems.
In rare cases it can precipitate liver failure, but usually only in older people (some called 'Nanna') with pre-existing liver disease.
Buck up.
For Bargains.
First person to reply to this post will get my collection of eneloops.
Die + Gimme.
The Chinese "contaminated" ones?
Can I have your udemy account?
What are u doin on OzB then? Go blow all ur cash on cocaine & hookers
As of 9pm Monday, the recall has extended to the Nanna's Raspberries .
Serious question, don't flame. Why is this such a big scare? I have been vaccinated for Hep A…I don't plan on eating the things mind you but seems like this is pretty overboard media rubbish again?
You have been vaccinated for Hep A, and so have I. But has everyone else? Remember that vaccination is not a guarantee against getting the disease, it just makes it much less likely. Hep A vaccinations are not that common in Australia unless someone travels or works in countries where water and food sanitation can be poor. Unfortunately as we've seen in this outbreak, sometimes the contaminated food travels to you.
Nine confirmed cases of Hep A so far, and it could be more as the incubation period for the disease is quite long.
I have had flu like symptoms - fever , nausea etc and have been to the doctor - had the test and have to have the next 2 days off work till the results come in - as I work in a contact environment with immuno suppressed people - HIV , chemo etc.
For me I am rarely ill and have heaps of sick leave but I work with a lot of people who even a week without pay would really hurt. It's a bit like the vaccination debate - if I get an illness like measles it may not have a lasting effects but if I unintentionally pass it on I could seriously harm someone.
Obviously you thought it had the potential to harm you to seek out the immunisation.
So many people have these in the freezer (especially with eating healthier for new year and recent half price specials) I think making people aware not to risk their health is important.
It's not really overboard.
Hardly anyone in Australia is vaccinated for Hep A.
It's easily transmitted.
It's potentially fatal, mainly for older people or those with weaker immune systems.
The point is it should have never have happened in the first place. How can we trust other imported produce we buy? When we buy from coles or woolworths there is a degree of trust/responsibility that what we are buying won't make us sick or kill us.
You do realise that vaccines are not 100% effective, don't you?
Much of their benefit comes from "herd immunity". If 95% of the population is vaccinated and so 90% can't catch it, it spreads more slowly and to less people and so can be contained. This protects even the unvaccinated. However if the number of people getting vaccinated gets too low, it spreads more easily once again.
So there's a lot of benefit to getting vaccinated. It literally saves lives! But being 100% immune isn't one of them.
you can't say that!!! the north shore upper middle class mums will scold you, and tell you that your whole family will suffer autism tomorrow.
Like you said though, vaccinations don't save strong bodied individuals, who can fight a Hep A infection… its for those with compromised immune systems, pre-vaccinated kids, older people who are naturally weaker with a higher pre-disposition to contracting the virus. If everyone around them is vaccinated, it can slow down the spread of the disease, potentially saving the lives of those who can't fight it.
Problem for Hep A in Australia, nearly no one is vaccinated (which reminds me I should've gotten my booster a few weeks ago!) unless they've travelled to somewhere that recommends a Hep A shot. So while most of us will be ok after eating the berries (maybe a week off work), its those who can't fight it that's the problem - regardless of whether they eat the berries!
Agree with most of that. Note that some smaller percentage of "strong bodied indivdiuals" will also be affected badly or even die. Just a much smaller proportion. It's a numbers game.
Take any immunisation you're offered and to those north shore mums stop getting your medical advice from dim-witted celebs and a small minority of deluded medical professionals. And go to your old highschool and insist on a full refund on your science education: It's pathetic.
@syousef:
My arms were quite numb before travelling around the world LOL.
Took everything, inc. Polio (still around in Russia?!)… problem is - it aint cheap (I think all up I spent about $700 on myself + about $400 on the missus as she already had some done + time of work going back to get different shots as some couldn't be mixed). Would hate to take a whole family for vaccinations.
There is alot of misinformation here, there is alot they dont tell you, and one of those things is if you take vaccines it sidesteps your own immune responses, so you do not create antibodies naturally. Thats why when older people take flu vaccines for decades on end, then may miss taking it one year, they suddenly die of the flu, cause they have developed no natural immunity to the flu which is continuously evolving. While taking vaccines stagnates your own ability to fight off the flu naturally through your immune system and naturally occuring antibodies.
It should be resold under the name 'Nanna's Dingleberries'
Fecalberries
DeadAndBurrieds.
The list is getting longer, we need to keep up. Coles, Hanna's, rasberries, what's next.
I am takeing all I can back to Coles, my purchase place. Not sure what I'll do with the repackaged open bags, but binning them is better than binning me and mine.
I could make a tart, for my bad boss and go on holidays for two months!?!.
Really it it government fault, in that we must have truth of labeling , made in Australia from local and imported goods, made in Australia from imported and local products, made in Australia, Product of Australia, Australian fish caught in Australian waters packed in china.
And so on.
The berries in question were labelled as coming from China. It's a prime reason why I've been buying Chilean rather than Chinese berries for years, as I eat them raw. No opportunity to destroy bacteria or viruses using heat.
I agree that our food labeling laws are thoroughly inadequate. My latest batch of Speedy Berry raspberries from Costco state 'Packed in Australia'. That is less than helpful. Only when the consumer visits the Speedy Berry web site do they discover the berries are from Chile.
There's an organic brand of berries sold at Colesworths that states the berries are packed in New Zealand, but each pack has along with the best before date a label stating where they came from (usually Chile, Argentina, USA). Why can't all companies do this? They already have the equipment to custom print a best before label on the product. One suspects the obvious reason is companies want to hide the origin of products as much as legally possible.
Anyone successfully returned/refunded opened and repackaged (in a ziplock bag) berries to WW or Coles?
We are scarce for space in the freezer so have a habit of putting everything in ziplock bags and chucking away the cardboard packaging.
I have allowed those returns at my woolworths store :)
OK, thanks for the feedback. I'll see how I fare at my local WW.
We have Nanna's Raspberries and Creative Gourmet cherries. I called Patties and apparently the cherries are grown and packed in Turkey, hence not affected.
My question is this, say you have frozen berries that aren't part of the recall but could still be from affected countries, does washing them thoroughly in your own water before consuming effectively remove the risk of the virus?
Washing them in your own water will probably turn them yellow.
Seriously though, from what I've read washing them in clean water will help by diluting the virus somewhat. It will also make a mess of your berries in many cases. Cooking with them is a better bet and making a syrup probably better again. BUT don't take my word for it, do your own research.
Don't care what the berries look like they're for smoothies anyway.. I've got stacks of them that aren't affected by the recall just trying to decide if binning them is the only option or if washing and blending them is very low risk.
"This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent source of analysis, commentary and news from the university and research sector.
Written by Martyn Kirk, Convener, Master of Philosophy in Applied Epidemiology at Australian National University
Extract: There is evidence that fruits, such as berries, and some vegetables, such as tomatoes and sprouts, can sometimes internalise bacteria and viruses during growing. This means that the disease-causing agent may actually be inside the fruit and is almost impossible kill except by cooking.
The hepatitis A virus is easily killed by cooking to more than 85 degrees Celsius, which would deal with most other bacteria and viruses. Washing is useful for getting rid of surface contamination of fruits and vegetables, which is sufficient most of the time. But if there is a possibility that foods, such as berries, are contaminated with disease-causing agents, it is best to avoid them altogether."
@Possumbly: Thanks that pretty much spells it out. Sounds like i'll be trying smoothies made with cooked berries.
I've read that throwing them in the bin effectively removes the risk of the virus.
Apparently The incubation period is up to 60 days for HEP A. The solicitor on talk back radio this morning said if you ate some, don't through them out, stick them leftovers in the back of the freezer, clearly labelled "not for consumption" so the kiddies cant get them.
If you go on to develop Hep A, the berries will be a gift from god for your solicitor.
Since October i've eaten about 14 packets of these. I do a blend with Guava nectar for a gym drink.
Not worried, but i'll wait and see what happens.
Once again this scare is to do with food from China.
Seriously we grow our own berries with proper food handling and regulations. It is not worth paying less for an inferior product, and to get yourself infected, sick, for being cheap. That's not the Ozbargainers way.
Health and time loss on this not worth it
and Chile
What if I WANT to get Hepatitis A?
After you get Hep A, you are IMMUNE FOR LIFE:
"Symptoms may last for several weeks, but full recovery usually occurs. A single infection of hepatitis A will give you lifelong immune protection"
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pag…
Then you are a fool. Hep A will kill a proportion of people. You will spread it on to others. Failing to immunize let alone getting diseases like this on purpose ought to be a crime!
I heard many people are trying to get their hands on a packet for a payout! Willing to contract the virus just for the potential money!
I don't know why, but after reading this comment I felt compelled to search for "Nanna's Frozen Berries" on GumBay (Gumtree & eBay)!
Hot off the press…. The Australian government has decided to amend regulations governing the labelling of frozen berries. Going forward, manufacturers will now have to add the "May contain traces of poo" disclaimer to the product description!
Sorry… one too many beers tonight! :P
Why should us Australian consumers put up with inferior and may I say contaminated foods from other countries. Our own Australian grown foods are the best in the world and were happy for quite a significant portion to be sold and shipped overseas so other countries can have our clean fresh produce and traders reap high profits from our farmers products. In the meantime we import poor quality and contaminated products from other countries. Its not good enough for importers or the government to say we are importing these products from reputable sources that meet health and safety requirements. The truth is that the government cant control or guarantee the hygiene or quality of goods coming from these countries, have they got inspectors at the tens of thousands of sources, can they control the mind set of workers in foreign countries.
The worst thing, as a lot of people know, is the ambiguity in the packaging and labeling of these products. We need to be able to clearly see where the contents of what we are going to eat comes from. Packaged or made in Australia from local and imported products is a complete joke. In my dictionary that means that the air in the package is Australian while everything else is probably sourced from somewhere where you don't want to know. I keep well away from these. But its so hard to find something that is not labelled in such a deceiving manner. If the company that packages the products does not clearly label where the contents come from then they probably don't even know themselves and or have no pride or confidence in the source.
Anyway, not only should we be worried about what we buy from the supermarket but we should also worry about what we eat or drink from restaurants, food courts, juice stations etc etc…..how do we know where the ingredients come from.
Sometimes is best not to think too much about these things.
Why should us Australian consumers put up with inferior and may I say contaminated foods from other countries.
i don't see any problem with importing food from other countries as long as it is safe to consume.
australian grown or made products aren't necessarily any better. product recalls due to e. coli and listeria contamination and other manufacturing problems are very common. https://www.recalls.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/952823
certainly food labelling could be improved.
(i don't see any problem with importing food from other countries as long as it is safe to consume.)
Neither do I as long as I know where its from and the country its from has a good track record.
(australian grown or made products aren't necessarily any better. product recalls due to e. coli and listeria contamination and other manufacturing problems are very common.)
Any better than what or where?, is what is what should be asked. I know I can trust Australian grown foods better that foods from certain other countries. Everyone can have problems but again I would like to know where its from which would indicate to me what chemicals are used and the development methods that are employed and what that countries track record is like.
I would like better labeling so that I can make a decision based on what I am comfortable with.
Indeed. There is a media and interest group narrative developing here of "China = bad. Australia = clean and fresh". We should be careful not to throw stones however… Two months ago I ate some Petite Cuisine (Darshan) vegetable patties from Costco. Frozen product, never thawed, straight into frying pan. I had a wicked case of food poisoning from that with vomiting for 2 straight days. Made in Australia.
Seems like you need to read the labels for items imported from NZ too - that have local and imported ingredients such as frozen vegetables.
http://ausveg.com.au/media-release/horticulture-new-zealand-…
Exactly
These things happen in food, no big deal.
I have a pack of the blueberries in the freezer, but they are about 6 or 8 weeks old now, they're find, I've eaten half of them
So 42 to 56 days old. They're saying if you bought them in the last 60 days aren't they? Why risk it?
Cause I've eaten half the pack - I'm fine.
Bet you wouldn't be saying that if you caught Hepatitis
Finished a pack of Nanna's frozen berries about 2 weeks ago.
Last night, go to bed with fever, nausea, abdominal cramps.
Go to Doctors this morning who said it was more than likely Gastro.
Phew!!
I would hate to be Nanna's liability insurer right now.
Probably Vero or some similar company.
Ok. So has anyone else noticed that coles has "Australian Frozen Blueberries (300g) Code: 1303187P 100% Fresh Frozen Australian Bluberries". I checked my fridge and the Coles Frozen Blueberries are from Chile. It seems a spot of good luck that they have changed source ahead of the hepatitis scare. And they are the same price too!
I don't represent Coles by the way. Just if anyone (like me) is trying to source 100% Australian Berries thought I'd mention these.
the ones sourced from chile are 500g, the australian ones are 300g. both are $4.50
Cheers! I'll be buying the Australian ones anyway methinks. I just checked at my local store, and nothing there. Guess I'll have to order online.
my local stores seem to stock the full range of berries. i've noticed they've recently introduced frozen cranberries as well. the coles diced frozen mango was pretty yukkie though.
Just cook everything and all will be ok.
Apart from the dirty Chinese exporters, I blame no one but the stupid government in charge of the import/export of food and agriculture into this country.
We have been repeatedly told about "Night Fertilizer" and all the other pseudonyms that point to human feces used as fertilizer for fruit and veg for a (large) portion of the produce there, yet no one here bats an eye to place restrictions and/or regulations on exported produce from those regions. Think about the long term costs of medicare funded by tax-payers for these people affected by Hep-A, etc. now multiply that by the many years ppl were hospitalized by imported fecal matter and you tell me if it's cheaper to run a government committee to cock-block dirty chinese imports via audits, and other red tape.
"A government test indicated that nearly half the rice sold in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou was contaminated with cadmium"
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB100014241278873247870045784945…
Unfortunately food contamination isn't rare in China. Anyone who has traveled through China would have noticed the suspicious 'fog' that only lifts after heavy rain around major cities and even in the country side. That pollution then washes onto farmland and into waterways that are used for irrigation.
We can cook berries to kill off any virus or bacterial contamination, but when it comes to other pollutants there's nothing the consumer can do.
China's pollution per capita is far less than ours. There is plenty we can do. Walking out of work today every computer, copier & a/c was left on. Its not industry that is creating pollution, its the everyday people.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/chinas-choice/2014/ap…
Buying any food/supplement from China regardless of whether it's organic or not is always a big no-no IMO.
Local produce always
FYI
Where does the fruit come from?
1kg Mixed Berries (RECALLED): Packed in China
Raspberries Blackberries and Strawberries are sourced from China and packed in China.
Blueberries are sourced from Chile before being packed in China.
1kg Raspberries (RECALLED): Picked and packed in China
1kg Blueberries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Chile.
1kg Sliced Strawberries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Chile.
1kg Mango (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Vietnam
800g Avocado (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Peru
CREATIVE GOURMET
Mixed Berries 500g and 300g (RECALLED): Packed in China.
Raspberries Blackberries and Strawberries are from China.
Blueberries are sourced from Chile before being packed in China.
Raspberries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed at different sources in China to Nanna's 1kg Raspberries, Nanna's 1kg Mixed Berries, and 300g & 500g Creative Gourmet Mixed Berries.
Blueberries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Chile.
Whole Strawberries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in China at different sources in China to Nanna's 1kg Raspberries, Nanna's 1kg Mixed Berries, and 300g & 500g Creative Gourmet Mixed Berries.
Blackberries(NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in China at different sources in China to Nanna's 1kg Raspberries, Nanna's 1kg Mixed Berries, and 300g & 500g Creative Gourmet Mixed Berries.
Cherries (NOT RECALLED): Picked and packed in Turkey.
SOURCE:http://www.patties.com.au/
Apologies to our Asian folks, but guys please stay away from any Produce (fruit/veggies) picked/packed and/or Produced: Frozen/Fresh/Preserved from Asia.
As 'Cluster' pointed out there are too many environmental hazards that are unregulated and un-policed.
From the pollutants, chemical wastes, and sewage as fertilizer, you'd be stupid to by any produce from there.
I'de rather ditch the berries in my banana smoothie than eat shit (pun intended).
Also, I know we're ozbargainers, but Coles/Woolies sell Blueberry/Raspberry punnets almost ALWAYS for $5. these are local, and at max - produce of NZ. (which I hope weren't imported from China lol)
Well the Nanna blueberries in the freezer are now in quarantine and did some research on alternative suppliers. Funnily enough I found a place less than 3 km's away (Hornsby) that supply berries in bulk, we bought 1kg of blueberries from them, they are from Canada. Work out cheaper @7.90 kg. Not tried them yet as Wife went around this afternoon to pick them up. Will report back in 6 weeks time ; )
http://www.frozberries.com.au
So can we eat these now?
Yes, and all supermarkets seem to have dropped their prices due to lower demand.
Bought a pack for $5 then remembered the whole fiasco.
Then went to buy fresh ones, $12 for a tiny punnet of raspberries are you joking me!
The only thing that concerns me as i couldn't find any official announcement that products coming through now were safe, seems it totally fell off the radar after it was recalled.
I have stopped buying them. Don't want to take the risk.
No, its already expired and you've almost finished it and you're asking if you can return it LOL.