People urged to check their freezer following discovery of radioactive substance in food sold at Walmart
People are being urged to check their freezers following a discovery of a radioactive substance in food sold at Walmart.
The discovery involves contamination that was detected not in stores, but at major shipping ports during routine inspections by border protection agents.
Health regulators are urgently warning Americans to avoid consuming a brand of frozen shrimp sold at the supermarket.
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The FDA warned that Great Value raw frozen shrimp was contaminated with Cesium-137, a dangerous radioactive isotope.
Customs and Border Protection agents detected the radioactive isotope Cesium-137 (Cs-137) in shipping containers at four major US ports and immediately alerted the FDA.
The agency tested the containers' contents and confirmed Tuesday (20 August) that shrimp from Indonesian company BMS Foods was contaminated.
CBP and the FDA are working with Indonesian seafood regulators to identify the exact source of contamination. Evidence suggests the shrimp was processed or stored in unsanitary conditions that likely led to the radioactive contamination, making it unsafe for consumption.
The contaminated shipping containers entered ports in Los Angeles, Houston, Savannah, and Miami. The containers included three lots of Great Value brand frozen raw shrimp, all with best-by dates of March 15, 2027.
While the FDA confirmed Cs-137 in one batch of breaded shrimp, all contaminated shipments were prevented from entering the US food supply.
The risk from passing a contaminated shipping container is low, but that risk compounds dramatically if someone consumes radioactive shrimp. Once inside the body, Cs-137 acts as a long-term, internal radiation source that can result in radiation burns, acute radiation sickness, cancer and death.
"If you have recently purchased raw frozen shrimp from Walmart that matches this description, throw it away," the FDA stated.
The agency also instructed distributors and retailers to dispose of the product immediately. The 'Do Not Eat' warning is issued 'out of an abundance of caution,' the FDA reported, adding that testing hasn't confirmed contamination in any products currently sold in stores.
The FDA said it continues working with industry partners to 'trace all implicated products processed by PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati through the supply chain to gather as much information about them as possible and take action as appropriate.'
According to the CDC, low-level exposure to Cs-137 is common due to past nuclear weapons testing in the 1950s and 60s, resulting in its environmental presence.
Since the highly concentrated radioactive material is shielded in medical and industrial equipment, the major health risk arises when the protective cover is compromised and the substance is released.
If ingested, Cs-137 disperses throughout the body's soft tissues, concentrating in muscles and creating a persistent internal radiation source.
It exposes nearby tissues to beta particles and gamma rays, which greatly raises the risk of getting cancer.