The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an advisory not to eat, sell, or serve imported shrimp processed by Indonesia-based PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati, which does business as BMS Foods and supplies frozen raw shrimp to certain Walmart stores under the “Great Value” brand name.
It also recommended Walmart recall shrimp from the processor.
The FDA issued the alert after U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) identified a radioactive isotope called Caesium-137 (Cs-137) in shipping containers at the Ports of Los Angeles, Houston, Savannah, and Miami. The shipments in question were stopped from entering the U.S., and a subsequent FDA investigation found evidence of Cs-137 in one shipment of breaded shrimp. Though other samples did not test positive for the contaminant, the FDA has said that it cannot rule out contamination of the other shipments.
Though the FDA said it has not found evidence of Cs-137 contaminated shrimp entering U.S. commerce, it is advising that all products from the company be discarded.
The FDA also issued an import alert which will stop all products produced by PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati from entering the U.S. until an FDA investigation determines that the causes of the contamination have been dealt with.
Cs-137 is a byproduct of nuclear fission or weapons testing, and has been found in elevated concentrations in areas of nuclear accidents such as Chernobyl and Fukushima. In very low levels it does not pose an acute threat of harm, but over time exposure increases the risk of diseases like cancer.
The levels of Cs-137 found in the affected shipment were lower than the FDA’s derived intervention level, a benchmark which regulators use to identify a radiation contamination emergency. Nonetheless, the FDA said that the alert was necessary to protect the public from potential repeated exposure.
The alert advised the public to throw out any shrimp from the following lots, which entered the country before the Cs-137 contaminated lot was found:
Great Value brand frozen raw shrimp, lot code: 8005540-1, Best by Date: 3/15/2027
Great Value brand frozen raw shrimp, lot code: 8005538-1, Best by Date: 3/15/2027
Great Value brand frozen raw shrimp, lot code: 8005539-1, Best by Date: 3/15/2027
The affected lots were sold at Walmart stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia.
In its alert to the public, the FDA said the contamination likely came from the product being prepared, packed, or stored under conditions where trace amounts of Cs-137, which the FDA said is “widespread worldwide,” were present.
The FDA also said that it “has learned that Walmart has received implicated raw frozen shrimp, imported after the date of first detection of Cs-137 by CBP, but from shipments that did not alert for Cs-137” and that it recommended that Walmart recall the product.
