Genki Sushi is cleared to reopen

Genki Sushi’s 10 restaurants on Oahu will reopen for business today, after getting the all-clear from the state Department of Health on Friday.

Those restaurants plus one outlet on Kauai were shut down Aug. 15 when the Health Department found a link between raw scallops served there and the outbreak of hepatitis A.

Since then the restaurants have been extensively sanitized with oversight from health officials, and all employees who are returning to work have been medically screened and cleared.

“Serving safe, high-quality food is always our top priority and we deeply regret that the ongoing investigation by the Department of Health is indicating that customers may have become ill from a food product that our restaurants on Oahu and Kauai received from a distributor,” said Mary Hansen, chief administrative officer for Genki Sushi USA.

“It is very reassuring that none of our employees tested positive for the virus and we are happy that they can get back to work when the restaurants reopen. At the same time, our hearts go out to those who have the illness and hope for their speedy recovery.”

The Kauai restaurant is undergoing renovations and will remain closed temporarily.

So far, 252 people have contracted hepatitis A in the current Hawaii outbreak, all of them adults. Sixty-six required hospitalization.

The illnesses are blamed on contaminated frozen scallops that were imported from the Philippines and served raw as sushi. The product was pulled from the market as soon as the link was discovered.

Because hepatitis A has a long incubation period, people have continued to fall ill even though the product has been embargoed for more than three weeks. It takes from 15 to 50 days after exposure for a person to develop symptoms of the contagious liver infection. The virus is transmitted through tainted food or drink or close contact with someone who has it.

Sea Port Products Corp. of Kirkland, Wash., recalled 24,000 pounds of scallops that had been produced by De Oro Resources Inc. in Suba Basbas, Philippines, after two samples taken by the Food and Drug Administration tested positive for hepatitis A. It has stopped importing scallops from De Oro. The FDA is investigating how the shellfish were contaminated.

Genki Sushi, which has 350 employees statewide, cooperated during the investigation and its aftermath, health officials said. Its restaurants on Maui and Hawaii island were not affected because they did not receive the tainted scallops.

“The management team of Genki Sushi restaurants on Oahu and Kauai has given us their full cooperation, and the department is confident that they are in compliance with all health regulations,” Health Director Dr. Virginia Pressler said Friday. “Genki Sushi has been cleared by the Department of Health to reopen to the public.”

The company discarded all produce and food items that could have been exposed to the virus, along with all single-serve equipment such as napkins, chopsticks, cups and takeout containers.

All surfaces, whether in contact with food or not — including counters, equipment, dining rooms, walls, floors and restrooms — were disinfected with formulas approved by the Health Department.

All employees working in the reopened restaurants have been vaccinated against hepatitis A. They also took food safety classes at each restaurant site based on the FDA’s manual on hygiene and food safety. Genki will also work with all its vendors to improve their food safety policies, Hansen said.

“We want to make sure that our customers can rest assured when they come in for sushi that they will be served safe, high-quality food,” she said.