Check the origin of your oysters if you bought them for the New Year: they are temporarily prohibited from sale

On Wednesday December 27, 2023, the Gironde prefecture banned the sale of oysters from the Arcachon basin. If you bought these oysters, you should definitely not eat them. In fact, they are currently the cause of several cases of food poisoning. To avoid other incidents, batches of shellfish caught in this area must be withdrawn from sale. If you have eaten oysters from Arcachon, don’t panic since no serious cases have been detected. We tell you everything about the risks and what to do if you have consumed it.

If you have recently eaten oysters from the Arcachon basin, you may suffer food poisoning. If there are no serious signs, you still risk having symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain or even fever. This is due to the presence of norovirus in oysters which causes gastroenteritis. The shellfish were contaminated by the overflow of wastewater and rainwater into the natural environment. Noroviruses are not originally present in seawater.

If you have eaten these oysters, the National Food Safety Agency reminds you that you need to hydrate a lot. She also advises cleaning your refrigerator well and maintaining a temperature between 0 and 4°C. Finally, remember to adopt barrier gestures. In the case of gastroenteritis, there is no need to take antibiotics. If your case worsens, do not hesitate to call 15 or consult your doctor. For those who have purchased the oysters but have not yet consumed them, you must return them to your point of sale. They should absolutely not be eaten. So remember to carefully check the origin of the oysters you have purchased.