A recall of various fruit juices over a lack of pasteurization and sanitation records has received the second-highest risk warning from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Evergreen Orchard Farm LLC, based in New Jersey, issued a voluntary recall for three of its juice products on July 3. The FDA issued a Class II risk classification for the recall on September 3.
Newsweek contacted Evergreen Orchard Farm LLC for comment by email outside regular working hours.
Why It Matters
A Class II risk classification, one of three, refers to a situation in which the “use of or exposure to a violative product may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences or where the probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote,” according to the FDA.
Pasteurization, or heat treatment, is used to kill potentially harmful bacteria in certain foods and drinks.
“While most people’s immune systems can usually fight off the effects of foodborne illness, children, older adults, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems (such as transplant patients and individuals with HIV/AIDS, cancer, or diabetes) risk serious illnesses or even death from drinking untreated juices,” the FDA said on its website.
What To Know
These are the products affected by the recall:
- Korean Pear Juice—610 cases, with codes P20261110 and P20261130
- Grape Juice—78 cases, with the code G20261215
- Jujube Juice—197 cases, with the codes J20260910 and J20261110
The products were sold in foil pouches holding 4 fluid ounces, with each case holding 25 pouches. They were distributed to retail locations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.
As of September 3, no illnesses had been reported in connection with the consumption of the recalled products.
What People Are Saying
The Food and Drug Administration said on its website: “When fruits and vegetables are fresh-squeezed or used raw, bacteria from the produce can end up in your juice or cider. Unless the produce or the juice has been pasteurized or otherwise treated to destroy any harmful bacteria, the juice could be contaminated.
“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received in the past, reports of outbreaks of foodborne illness, often called ‘food poisoning,’ that have been traced to drinking fruit and vegetable juice and cider that has not been treated to kill harmful bacteria.”
What Happens Next
The FDA lists the recall as ongoing. Consumers who purchased the affected products should not consume them.
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