FSIS Issues Health Alert For Certain Siluriformes Products Imported From Brazil

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service or FSIS has issued a public health alert for around 165 pounds of imported frozen Siluriformes products.

The products were imported from Brazil, which is ineligible to export Siluriformes products to the United States.

The product subject to the public health alert include the 13-14 lbs. cases containing “GUTTED FROZEN FISH SCIENTIFIC NAME: Hypostomus” with a production date of 23/04/2021.

The frozen whole Siluriformes products were produced on April 23. Newark, New Jersey -based EB Express Provisions Inc. is the importer of record. The product is identified with an ineligible establishment number (S.I.F. 188) on its packaging, and it does not bear a USDA mark of inspection.

These items were shipped to retail locations in Massachusetts. The whole frozen fish were removed from the cases and sold individually, by weight, in plastic bags at Mass. Mineirao Markets.

According to the agency, a recall was not recommended as the affected products are believed to be no longer available for consumers to purchase. Meanwhile, the FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ freezers.

The issue was noted when FSIS followed up on a referral from USDA’s Smuggling Interdiction & Trade Compliance Program, regarding Cascudo fish (Hypostomus sp), of the order Siluriformes, product of Brazil.

Consumers are urged to throw away the products or return to the place of purchase.

In recent incidents, FSIS in mid April issued an alert against 211,406 pounds of raw ground turkey products over concerns of Salmonella Hadar illness. The agency in early April warned against about 39 pounds of raw ground chorizo sausage products due to concerns that they may be contaminated with extraneous materials.

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