Skip to main content
          Skip to FDA Search
          Skip to in this section menu
          Skip to footer links


U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government

					Here’s how you know
          			Dot gov**The .gov means it’s official.**Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.
							      SSL**The site is secure.** The **https://** ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. 
			U.S. Food and Drug Administration
				
        Search
            Menu
							
						Search FDA
									
									Submit search 
		Featured
							Contact FDA
	                FDA Guidance Documents
	                Recalls, Market Withdrawals and Safety Alerts
	                Press Announcements
	                Warning Letters
	                Advisory Committees
	                En Español

					Products
            Food
							Drugs
							Medical Devices
							Radiation-Emitting Products
							Vaccines, Blood, and Biologics
							Animal and Veterinary
							Cosmetics
							Tobacco ProductsTopics
            About FDA
							Combination Products
							Regulatory Information
							Safety
							Emergency Preparedness
							International Programs
							News and Events
							Training and Continuing Education
							Inspections and Compliance
							Science and ResearchInformation For
            Consumers
	            Patients
	            Industry
	            Health Professionals
	            Federal, State and Local Officials 
 In this section:

                CFSAN Constituent Updates

CFSAN Constituent Updates Home
          Food
          News & Events from CFSAN
          CFSAN Constituent Updates
          FDA Works to Enhance the Safety of BerriesCFSAN Constituent Updates FDA Works to Enhance the Safety of Berries
  
  	
    Subscribe to Email Updates
    Share
    Post
    Linkedin

    Email
    PrintConstituent Update

July 22, 2022

Consistent with the FDA’s commitment to enhance produce safety, the FDA is developing a food safety prevention strategy to enhance the safety of fresh and frozen berries. The strategy is being developed in response to a history of hepatitis A (HAV) and norovirus (NoV) outbreaks linked to the consumption of both fresh and frozen berries.

In the U.S., there have been four HAV outbreaks and three NoV outbreaks linked to frozen berries from 1990 to 2016, and since 2011, there have been three HAV outbreaks linked to fresh berries, including a current outbreak linked to fresh organic strawberries. Globally, from 1983 to 2018, there were 50 outbreaks attributed to frozen berries: 36 caused by NoV and 14 by HAV. Freezing preserves berries but generally does not inactivate viruses that may be introduced at various points in the supply chain, such as by infected workers, contaminated water or contaminated food contact surfaces. In addition, fresh berries are generally eaten raw without a kill-step that could eliminate pathogens.

Much like ongoing prevention work for other commodities, such as leafy greens, tahini, and imported specialty mushrooms, the food safety prevention strategy for berries will be informed by the findings of surveillance sampling.  In August, the FDA plans to resume an assignment to collect and test frozen berries that it paused at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The assignment seeks to estimate the prevalence of HAV and NoV in frozen strawberries, raspberries and blackberries and help the FDA identify sites where practices or conditions may exist that constitute safety vulnerabilities. To date, the FDA has collected and tested more than 1,100 samples under this assignment and plans to collect and test about 427 more to meet the assignment’s public health goals. The agency does not plan to collect or test any additional frozen strawberries as we have already met our collection target for that commodity.

The FDA plans to work collaboratively with industry, academia, and regulatory partners in the development of the food safety prevention strategy to identify measures that can be taken to limit or prevent contamination from occurring throughout the berry supply chain, approaches to re-enforce control measures and their application, and areas where additional research is needed.

For additional information:

Microbiological Surveillance Sampling: FY 19-22 Frozen Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries and Blackberries)
	Bacteriological Analytical Manual (BAM) Chapter 26 and Appendices: Concentration, Extraction and Detection of Enteric Viruses from Food

                                                                                  Content current as of:
      07/22/2022
              
              
Regulated Product(s)
		 Food & BeveragesCFSAN Constituent Updates
 Subscribe to CFSAN Constituent Updates
                        Get email updates delivered to your inbox.
    Enter your email address to subscribe:
 Footer Links
    FDA Archive
          About FDA
          Accessibility
      Visitor Information
          Website Policies / Privacy
          No FEAR Act
          Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
      FOIA
          HHS.gov
          USA.gov
    Contact FDA
      Follow FDA on Facebook
      Follow FDA on X
      Follow FDA on Instagram
      Follow FDA on LinkedIn
      View FDA videos on YouTube
      Subscribe to FDA RSS feeds
    FDA Homepage
    Contact Number
      1-888-INFO-FDA (1-888-463-6332) Back toTop