According to foreign media reports, an "extremely rare" fungal infection broke out at the Escanaba paper mill in Michigan, USA, which has caused 19 employees to be infected with blastomyces, and 74 employees are suspected of infection.

The paper mill has a total of 885 employees. At present, about a dozen factory employees have been hospitalized. The health agency is still working hard to determine the source of exposure to the fungus. The first symptoms of the factory employees began in January and February this year. The mill is currently owned by Billerud AG, a multinational paper and packaging company headquartered in Sweden.

The Escanaba factory has three paper machines with an annual capacity of 730,000 tons. It mainly produces cultural paper, label paper, etc. Billerud plans to convert two fine paper machines to packaging paper, one of which is expected to be converted in 2025 and the second in 2029. The converted total capacity will amount to approximately 1.1 million tons of boardboard (FBB) and coated kraft (CUK).

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, blastomycosis is an infection caused by a fungus called Blastomyces, which lives primarily in moist soil and breaks down organic matter, such as wood, and passes through Spread by inhalation of spores.

After a person is exposed to blastomyces and becomes infected, it can take three weeks to three months before symptoms appear. Symptoms can include fever and cough, and more severe cases can occur in people with weakened immune systems.