As of March 26, 2020, 36 people infected with the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes have been reported from 17 states. A list of the states and the number of cases in each can be found on the Map of Reported Cases page.
Listeria was identified in ill people’s samples from November 23, 2016, to December 13, 2019. Ill people range in age from less than 1 to 97 years, with a median age of 67. Fifty-eight percent of ill people are female. Of 32 ill people with information available, 30 hospitalizations have been reported. Four deaths have been reported from California, Hawaii, and New Jersey. Six cases are pregnancy-associated and two resulted in fetal loss.
Epidemiologic, traceback, and laboratory evidence indicates that enoki mushrooms labeled as “Product of Korea” are the likely source of this outbreak.
State and local public health officials interviewed ill people about the foods they ate in the month before they became ill. Twelve out of 22 (55%) reported eating mushrooms, including enoki, portobello, white, button, cremini, wood ear, maitake, and oyster.
On March 10, 2020, the California Department of Public Health collected enoki mushrooms for testing from grocery stores. Testing identified Listeria monocytogenes in one sample and whole genome sequencing is being conducted to determine if the Listeria in these recalled mushrooms is the same as the outbreak strain. These mushrooms are labeled as “Product of Korea” and were distributed by Guan’s Mushroom Co. On March 23, 2020, Guan’s Mushroom Co. recalled its enoki mushrooms.
On February 25, 2020, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development collected mushrooms for testing from a grocery store where an ill person purchased enoki mushrooms. Two samples of enoki mushrooms yielded the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes. These mushrooms are labeled as “Product of Korea” and were distributed by Sun Hong Foods, Inc. On March 9, 2020, Sun Hong Foods, Inc. recalled its enoki mushrooms.
Consumers, food service operators, and retailers should not eat, serve, or sell recalled enoki mushrooms.
FDA is working to determine if other distributors in the United States received the same enoki mushrooms.
On March 18, 2020, the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) issued a press release about their investigation findings. They detected Listeria monocytogenes in enoki mushrooms produced by two firms in Korea.
CDC is concerned that enoki mushrooms from Korea (Republic of Korea) may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. We are advising people who are more likely to develop a Listeria infection – pregnant women, adults age 65 or older, and people with weakened immune systems – to avoid eating any enoki mushrooms from Korea, until investigators determine the source of contamination and if additional products are linked to illness.
Listeria: Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the nation’s leading law firm representing victims of Listeria outbreaks. The Listeria lawyers of Marler Clark have represented thousands of victims of Listeria and other foodborne illness outbreaks and have recovered over $700 million for clients. Marler Clark is the only law firm in the nation with a practice focused exclusively on foodborne illness litigation. Our Listeria lawyers have litigated Listeria cases stemming from outbreaks traced to a variety of foods, such as deli meat, cantaloupe, cheese, celery and milk.
If you or a family member became ill with a Listeria infection after consuming food and you’re interested in pursuing a legal claim, contact the Marler Clark Listeria attorneys for a free case evaluation.