After more than a dozen people got sick from eating oysters collected from Area 3 in the Gulf Coast, the state is reiterating to people that seafood caught in Louisiana is safe to eat.
15 people became infected with Norovirus after eating oysters harvested in that area in the second half of January.
LDWF Secretary Madison Sheahan says people visiting New Orleans for the Super Bowl should by no means be discouraged from eating Louisiana seafood.
“We really just want to encourage everybody to take advantage of the wonderful natural resources we have here,” Sheahan says, “and one of the things we can do is to be able to eat Louisiana seafood this week.”
Sheahan says the Super Bowl is a golden opportunity for people to experience Louisiana seafood.
“We’ll hit record numbers of the folks that are traveling in, and some of them may be eating seafood for the first time,” Sheahan notes. “And so we really want them to be able to enjoy Louisiana seafood.”
A new state law went into effect New Year’s Day that requires restaurants and food vendors to indicate whether their seafood was caught off the Louisiana coast.
“We want to make sure you know what you’re eating, and I think every person that comes to Louisiana — if you’re expecting to eat Louisiana seafood, you want to be able to do that,” Sheahan says.
The Department of Health has closed Oyster Area 3 and has issued a recall for all oysters harvested from there since January 10th.
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