What to know about U.S food safety
AquaStar (USA) Corp. is recalling more than 85,000 bags of shrimp due to insanitary conditions where the products may have been contaminated with cesium-137, a radioactive element.
In an alert posted Sunday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the recall included approximately 49,920 bags of "Kroger Raw Colossal EZ Peel Shrimp," approximately 18,000 bags of "Kroger Mercado Cooked Medium Peeled Tail-Off Shrimp" and approximately 17,264 bags of AquaStar Raw Peeled Tail-on Shrimp Skewers.
The items were sold between June 12 and Sept. 17, 2025, at several retail locations including Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Soopers and more across 31 states, including: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee. Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming.
Specific UPC and lot codes as well as photos of the recalled shrimp products can be found on the FDA's website.
While the shrimp could be contaminated with a radioactive isotope called cesium-137, the FDA said that no products as of yet have tested positive for it.
Cesium-137, or cs-137, is the radioactive form of the element cesium, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Produced by nuclear fission, it's used in medical devices and is also a byproduct of nuclear fission in nuclear reactors and weapons testing, the EPA says.
"The primary health effect of concern following longer term, repeated low dose exposure (e.g., through consumption of contaminated food or water over time) is an elevated risk of cancer, resulting from damage to DNA within living cells of the body," the FDA announcement stated.
So far, no illnesses have been reported, according to the FDA, but consumers who purchased any affected shrimp should not consume it. Instead, the agency advises disposing the product or returning it to the place of purchase for refund.
The products were imported from Indonesian company PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati, which was also responsible for a recent recall of frozen shrimp sold at Walmart.
The agency said it issued the warning about Walmart's Great Value shrimp after it had detected cesium-137 in a single shipment of frozen shrimp from PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati.
In the latest alert, the FDA reshared a statement from the previous recall, which stated no product testing positive with cesium-137 has entered the U.S. commerce at this time.
Sara Moniuszko is a health and lifestyle reporter at CBSNews.com. Previously, she wrote for USA Today, where she was selected to help launch the newspaper's wellness vertical. She now covers breaking and trending news for CBS News' HealthWatch.
