A yellowfin tuna product used to make dishes like sushi and sashimi sold at US restaurants and grocery stores has been linked to an outbreak of salmonella that has made more than 100 people in 20 states and the District of Columbia ill, the government said.

The Food and Drug Administration said 116 cases had been reported, including 12 people who have been admitted to hospital. No deaths have been reported.

Moon Marine USA of California, also known as MMI, is voluntarily recalling 58,828lbs of frozen raw yellowfin tuna. It was labelled as Nakaochi Scrape AA or AAA when it was sold.

The company's website says it also has operations in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and India.

The product is not available for sale to individual consumers but may have been used to make dishes available in restaurants and grocery stores. Many of the people who became ill reported eating raw tuna in sushi as "spicy tuna", the FDA said.

Reports of the food-borne illness have mainly come from the US east and south, though cases have been reported as far west as Missouri and Texas.