Prepackaged caramel apples from U.S. not yet imported into Vietnam: agency

Prepackaged caramel apples from the United States have not yet been imported into Vietnam, said the Plant Protection Department (PPD) under Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Thursday amid fears over possible contamination of listeria monocytogenes virus of the product.

The information was released at a working session between PPD and the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam's capital Hanoi on Thursday over the issue. The apples have reportedly killed at least three people in the United States and caused around 30 others to be hospitalized due to possible infection by the virus.

Earlier in the day, the Vietnam Food Administration (VFA) under Vietnam's Ministry of Health has issued a warning over prepackaged caramel apples from the United States, and called for inspection among local businesses who might be importing the product.

The PPD on Thursday confirmed that nearly 90 percent of apples imported to Vietnam from the United States are sourced from Washington D.C., while the apples contaminated with listeria monocytogenes virus were produced by the California-based Bidart Bros Company, according to Vietnam's state-run news agency VNA.

The PPD is reviewing the situation and will ask Vietnamese importers of U.S. apples to check for the sources of their imported products.

The VFA earlier quoted U.S. Food and Drug Administration as saying that prepackaged caramel apples have been sold to Vietnam among other countries.

According to the VFA, virus-contaminated food can cause consumers high fever, severe headache, myalgia and nausea, as well as miscarriages and stillbirths. Endi