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Are frozen berries ok to eat again?

  • 27-03-2014 7:42pm
    #1
    kaji
    Registered Users Posts: 646 ✭✭✭


    I remember there was a warning on frozen berries last year, somthing to do wit Hep. C? Does anyone know if they're ok to eat now?


Comments

  • #2
    Greenmachine
    Registered Users Posts: 5,063 ✭✭✭Greenmachine


    Good question I imagine boiling them ruins the quality.


  • #3
    coffee_cake
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Politics Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 81,310 CMod ✭✭✭✭coffee_cake


    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=89647421&postcount=77

    :pac:

    Conclusion is we don't know


  • #4
    mcballer
    Registered Users Posts: 159 ✭✭mcballer


    Give the FSAI a ring. They have a Monday to Friday telephone line for public. I'm a student and visited at their premises and they have designated people to answer public questions and were super nice and friendly and open to helping public with food safety information!


  • #5
    JimsAlterEgo
    Registered Users Posts: 1,917 ✭✭✭JimsAlterEgo


    mcballer wrote: »
    Give the FSAI a ring. They have a Monday to Friday telephone line for public. I'm a student and visited at their premises and they have designated people to answer public questions and were super nice and friendly and open to helping public with food safety information!

    wasnt iy only blueberries from a certain region?


  • #6
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    JimsAlterEgo wrote: »
    wasnt iy only blueberries from a certain region?
    I never heard that, heard any berries.

    The problem is that they are frozen, so could be in long term storage for years to come.


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  • #7
    CeannRua
    Closed Accounts Posts: 470 ✭✭CeannRua


    I contacted the FSAI to ask. The advice to boil frozen berries for a minute before eating is still in place.


  • #8
    Sir Digby Chicken Caesar
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 23,556 ✭✭✭✭Sir Digby Chicken Caesar


    kind of defeats the point of getting frozen berries then


  • #9
    mcballer
    Registered Users Posts: 159 ✭✭mcballer


    Saw the warning signs again in lidl today about boiling. Though no sign in tesco by the Boland's frozen berries there. Hmm are Boland's frozen Irish berries...or just imported like others I wonder!!


  • #10
    CeannRua
    Closed Accounts Posts: 470 ✭✭CeannRua


    mcballer wrote: »
    Saw the warning signs again in lidl today about boiling. Though no sign in tesco by the Boland's frozen berries there. Hmm are Boland's frozen Irish berries...or just imported like others I wonder!!

    Not familiar with Boland's. Do you mean Boylan's? There's an old thread here that says they're imported. I looked at the time the warning came out first and couldn't find a company whose frozen berries are 100% Irish.


  • #11
    mcballer
    Registered Users Posts: 159 ✭✭mcballer


    Haahaa thanks Yep boylans that's the one. Grr boiling them renders them useless for what I'd want them for. Just gotta stump up and get fresh. And freeze if I want them for frozen delights!


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  • #12
    kaji
    Registered Users Posts: 646 ✭✭✭kaji


    Thanks Ceann Rua for making the phonecall!


  • #13
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    I imagine the FSAI will be overcautious, as I said stuff could be in storage for years to come.

    So an idea would be to ring the people themselves, like boylans. Though they might not know how long stores store them.

    http://barfblog.com/2014/03/linked-to-global-frozen-fruit-outbreak-28-cases-of-hepatitis-a-infection-reported-in-norway/
    Posted on March 30, 2014 by Doug Powell
    A total of 28 cases of hepatitis A infection has been reported over the last few months in Norway, where this disease is said to be rare, the Norwegian news Agency NTB reported Saturday, quoting public health officials.

    In almost half of the cases, the patients were found to have infected with hepatitis A virus while travelling abroad.

    The remaining half got infected in Norway, which was described as a rare occurrence.

    Last year there was an outbreak of hepatitis A in the Nordic countries, which was believed to be most likely caused by eating imported frozen berries.

    Norwegian health authorities suspect the new outbreak in Norway is also caused by eating contaminated food.


  • #14
    bullvine
    Registered Users Posts: 2,828 ✭✭✭bullvine


    I have been buying the Dunnes own brand ones for a couple of months, to be honest I wasn't aware of this warning. The dunnes ones say packed in Ireland but I'd say they are imported as well.


  • #15
    jtthom
    Registered Users Posts: 39 ✭jtthom


    Haven't bought these in a year or so. Take it that they're still not safe to eat?


  • #16
    dastardly00
    Registered Users Posts: 13,294 ✭✭✭✭dastardly00


    jtthom wrote: »
    Haven't bought these in a year or so. Take it that they're still not safe to eat?

    I've been eating either frozen strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries most days of the week for the last few months. They have either been Boylan's, or from Dunnes or Tesco.

    I asked my sister who is an Environmental Health Officer with the HSE and her own personal opinion is that it is extremely difficult for the FSAI to make any link between any Hep A cases and imported frozen berries. And that the FSAI were naturally overcautious.

    My own rationale for still eating frozen berries is that if they were dangerous/infected, then we would be hearing about this on the news a lot more! :)


  • #17
    USD Inflation Swap
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 22 ✭USD Inflation Swap


    Any update on this, is it safe to eat frozen berries yet?


  • #18
    fits
    Registered Users Posts: 13,208 ✭✭✭✭fits


    The advice here in Finland is to boil imported berries eg from poland, but locally grown berries are fine. I put them in with the porridge.


  • #19
    AnimalChin
    Closed Accounts Posts: 120 ✭✭AnimalChin


    I just started eating them again.....

    ...have I made a horrifying error!?!

    Edit, just saw dastardly's post...which makes me feel a bit better! :)


  • #20
    whiskeyman
    Registered Users Posts: 12,564 ✭✭✭✭whiskeyman


    https://www.fsai.ie/faqs/berries_hepatitis_a.html

    This was updated last Sept, and still advises to boil frozen berries


  • #21
    aiidee
    Registered Users Posts: 12 ✭aiidee


    I have been using them directly from freezer to make smoothies in blender for my kids.
    Just came across this thread now am concerned. Any ideas is this OK to do? thanks


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  • #22
    dastardly00
    Registered Users Posts: 13,294 ✭✭✭✭dastardly00


    AnimalChin wrote: »
    Edit, just saw dastardly's post...which makes me feel a bit better! :)

    I stopped buying frozen berries when the FSAI made the latest update to the page on their website last September :pac:

    I had been eating frozen berries up until then (without boiling them) even though I was aware of the advice from FSAI.

    I now buy fresh berries (raspberries, blackberries and blueberries) in Lidl a couple of times per week. The price is lower in Lidl than in other supermarkets and the quality is good in my opinion. It still costs a lot more than just buying frozen berries though. I miss not buying frozen strawberries as the fresh (imported) strawberries in supermarkets these days are absolutely rank :(


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