Food poisoning caused by norovirus detected in Helsinki restaurants

More than 30 cases of food poisoning were reported due to oysters supplied to the restaurants in Helsinki, said the City of Helsinki in a press release on Thursday.

The authority conducted inspections in restaurants and collected food samples due to the suspected cases of food poisoning.

The authority is still waiting for the results. Based on patient specimens, the food poisonings were caused by the norovirus.

The suspicion of food poisoning concerns oysters supplied by several importers.

The countries of origin of the products are the Netherlands, France, Spain and Ireland.

Oysters filter in noroviruses while living in water contaminated with human faeces.

If the oysters have been contaminated with norovirus, the people eating the oysters may fall ill.

Restaurants are unable to detect the norovirus in oysters, and heating the oysters briefly may not kill the virus.

Norovirus is destroyed by heating the food stuff to +90 degrees Celcius for two minutes.

The incubation period of norovirus is approximately 12–48 hours from consumption. The symptoms typically include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. The virus spreads easily in families and other contacts.

The authority requested the infected people to report about the suspected food poisonings.

“Cases of food poisoning related to oysters are investigated in Helsinki and Finland at large every year. Eating raw oysters always carries a risk, even though not all oysters are contaminated,” said Director of the Food Safety Unit Riikka Åberg.

The Food Safety Unit will continue to investigate the epidemic in cooperation with the City of Helsinki Epidemiological operations.