BATON ROUGE—The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Wednesday closed a Plaquemines Parish molluscan shellfish harvesting area. DHH also ordered a recall of all oysters harvested from the area since March 6, including shucked, frozen, breaded and post-harvest processed oysters, and oysters for the half shell market. Health Officer Dr. Jimmy Guidry signed the closure order when the Department... [more]

Recently, oysters may have been linked to Norovirus foodborne illness outbreaks. Two separate recalls of oysters harvested from Yaquina Bay in Oregon have been issued. OregonLive.com reported on February 26, 2010 that Oregon Oyster Farms, Inc. recalled oysters harvested in Yaquina Bay due to possible Norovirus food poisoning. On March 2, 2010, OregonLive.com also reported a second oyster recall due... [more]

Louisiana politicians and oyster industry lobbyists converged on Capital Hill this week. The Louisiana oyster industry is battling a potential FDA regulation that would impact oyster production. In November 2009, Louisiana lawmakers successfully petitioned for a postponement of these bans. Check out one of my earlier blogs on this subject. The FDA is concerned with a possible bacterial infection known... [more]

Consumers advised to avoid oysters harvested from San Antonio Bay The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is advising consumers to avoid eating oysters harvested from the San Antonio Bay on or after Nov. 16 due to reports of norovirus-associated illnesses in some people who had consumed oysters harvested from this area, which is located on the Gulf of Texas. The FDA, along with the Centers for Disease... [more]