A new paper published in Food Control, titled, “Detection of Foodborne Viruses in Berries—State of the Science and Considerations for the Future,” presents a comprehensive overview of the issues associated with norovirus and hepatitis A virus detection in berries.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO), frozen berries contaminated with hepatitis A virus and norovirus are virus-commodity pairs that present the highest public health burden globally. In the U.S., enteric viruses and frozen berries are a priority pairing of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the agency released a commodity-specific prevention strategy for the pair in January 2025.

The authors deliberated the technical and practical issues related to currently available detection methods, and called for realignment of resources towards enhanced risk management approaches across berry growing and processing to mitigate the flow of contaminated products in the global supply chain.

Authors comprised academic, industry, and government experts in food virology, microbiology, food safety, and risk assessment. The panel was convened by the Frozen Food Foundation in response to heightened awareness of the risks associated with enteric viruses in the berry supply chain.

Overall, the authors concluded that there is a need for a paradigm shift in how the entire frozen berry supply chain—from grower to retailer—can manage enteric virus safety. To achieve food safety goals, industry players cannot rely on molecular detection methods alone; rather, the authors emphasized the importance of prevention strategies like ensuring agricultural water quality, proper irrigation methods, worker hygiene training, and adequate sanitation.

Additionally, the panel explored the nuances of current sampling and testing protocols used globally across all stakeholders, including industry testing and regulatory surveillance, acknowledging it works best when concentrations of the virus are high and uniform. These conditions, however, are rarely met in real-world scenarios where contamination of berries mostly occurs at low levels and heterogeneously.

The authors underlined that testing can never guarantee safety, as the results only apply to the specific samples tested, not entire lots/batches.  

An affiliate of the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI), the Frozen Food Foundation is the nonprofit scientific arm of the frozen food industry that supports relevant research and education.