The Public Health Agency of Canada is reporting that in the two cases of Listeriosis from Ontario and Manitoba, the bacterium has the same genetic fingerprint as the bacterial strain seen in the United States multistate outbreak possibly linked to the consumption of tainted caramel apples.
The Public Health Agency of Canada and its federal partners, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada are investigating whether the products potentially linked to illnesses in the US may have been imported into Canada.
As a precaution, the Public Health Agency of Canada is advising that Canadians do not eat commercially produced, prepackaged caramel apples imported from the US until further notice. This includes plain caramel apples as well as those containing nuts, sprinkles, chocolate, or other toppings. These products could have a shelf life of one month.
The status of the two Canadian Listeriosis patients is not known at this time.
The Public Health Agency of Canada is working with its provincial and territorial partners to determine the source of these illnesses. At this time, it is not known whether these illnesses are linked to commercially produced, prepackaged caramel apples imported from the US.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is working closely with U.S. officials to determine if any potentially affected product may have been distributed in Canada.