Food watchdog warns over recalled mussel meat

Batches of a cooked mussel meat product have been withdrawn from sale after they were linked to food poisoning, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland has said.

A product recall is being undertaken of specific batches of Shellfish De La Mer Ltd frozen Irish cooked mussel meats.

“The recall is underway due to implicated batches of this product being linked to reports of illnesses associated with diarrhetic shellfish poisoning,” the FSAI said in a statement.

The implicated products were on sale in some Dunnes Stores and Tesco outlets throughout Ireland and they have been removed from sale.

Customers should not eat the affected batches should they already have purchased them.

According to the FSAI, the exact implicated batches are: Shellfish De La Mer Ltd, Cooked Mussel Meats (frozen) 500g size with batch codes 72774/13286 and best-before date of April 2015 and 72774/13349 with best-before date June 2015.

FSAI chief executive Prof Alan Reilly said consumers should check their freezers and throw out any products with those batch numbers.

“Consumers who have affected product in their freezer are advised to dispose of it or alternatively return it to the store they purchased it from.

“We are strongly advising consumers not to eat the affected product. Eating contaminated mussels could cause diarrhetic shellfish poisoning.

“Symptoms are diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain which can start between 30 minutes to a few hours after ingestion.

“Complete recovery occurs within a number of days. Consumers who may have already consumed this product and are feeling unwell, should seek medical advice.”