At least 136 people in eight states are now confirmed to have fallen ill with hepatitis A from eating contaminated pomegranate seeds sold in Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant berry mix from Costco stores, according to the latest number from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The number ill by state are as follows: Arizona (20), California (67), Colorado (25), Hawaii (7), New Mexico (6), Nevada (6), Utah (3), and Wisconsin (2). The cases reported from Wisconsin resulted from exposure to the product in California. The majority (56 percent) of victims are women, and ages range between 1 and 84 years old. Eight children under the age of 18 are among the ill, while the majority fall within the ages of 40 and 64. Of those sickened, 59 (43 percent) have been hospitalized. The outbreak strain, hepatitis A genotype 1B, is native to Northern Africa and the Middle East, and it is believed to have been on the pomegranate seeds imported from Turkey.
