Former U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner for Foods David Acheson has authored an article warning food company officials to prioritize food safety in light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) increasing prosecutions against executives of food companies responsible for pathogen outbreaks. Acheson describes the Park Doctrine, which allows the government to seek misdemeanor convictions against company officials without requiring proof that the officials knew of or participated in the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act violations. Further, after a misdemeanor conviction, subsequent violations are automatic felonies. “It is for all these reasons that it is critical that everyone in a food facility understand and follow all food safety practices, and that executives stay tuned in to everything going on in their operations—as they are ultimately responsible for every act that takes place,” Acheson writes. “Additionally, while I caution against simply writing up a food safety plan in order…
Category Archives Department of Justice
Following a Listeria outbreak allegedly linked to a Dole Food Co. salad manufacturing plant, the company is reportedly facing investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Several media outlets have reported that an FDA investigation obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request found Dole knew of nine positive tests for Listeria at the plant taken as early as July 2014, more than a year before the company closed the plant. See The Wall Street Journal, April 29, 2016. In response, Dole issued an April 29 statement expressing concerns “about the recent stories in some publications about the FDA’s observation reports. Those FDA reports deal with issues at our plant that we have corrected. We have been working in collaboration with the FDA and other authorities to implement ongoing improved testing, sanitation and procedure enhancements, which have resulted in the recent reopening of…
The founder of Midamar, an export company charged with fraud for sending “halal” meat to Malaysia that failed to meet halal slaughtering standards, has reportedly been sentenced to two years in federal prison and ordered to pay $60,000 in fines and $184,983 in disgorgement. Midamar was fined $20,000 and ordered to forfeit $600,000. A U.S. Department of Agriculture investigation revealed that William Aossey, Jr. instructed his employees at Midamar to change the application forms to indicate the meat had been produced at a Malaysia-approved facility instead of Midamar’s unapproved supplier. Aossey was convicted of making false statements on export applications, selling misbranded meat and committing wire and mail fraud in July 2015. The court cited Aossey’s advanced age and lack of criminal history to lower his sentence from the guideline sentencing range of 87-108 months. Aossey’s sons, Jalel and Yahya, have also been convicted of similar charges and will be…
Two cheese companies and an executive from a third company have pleaded guilty to charges relating to the manufacture and sale of adulterated and misbranded Parmesan cheese products. The companies, Universal Cheese & Drying, Inc. and International Packing, LLC, were charged with conspiracy to introduce misbranded cheese products into interstate commerce and to commit money laundering, while Michelle Myrter, an executive at Castle Cheese Co., pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of aiding and abetting the introduction of misbranded cheese. “The Department of Justice prosecutes people and companies who introduce adulterated or misbranded food into interstate commerce,” U.S. Attorney David Hickton said in a February 26, 2016, press release. “In this case, the fraud was perpetrated on consumers who purchased Parmesan and Romano cheeses that were inferior to what they believed they were buying.” Additional details about the Castle case and the ensuing media attention about the cellulose content in…
A Maine federal court has granted the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) a permanent injunction against Mill Stream Corp., a seafood company that allegedly failed to take measures preventing the formation and growth of Clostridium botulinum, the cause of botulism, or Listeria monocytogenes, the cause of listeriosis. U.S. v. Mill Stream Corp., No. 16-0080 (D. Me., order entered February 12, 2016). The injunction prevents the company and its employees from processing or distributing food produced at Mill Stream’s facilities or by its owner until several conditions have been satisfied, including: (i) retention of an independent laboratory to test for Listeria, (ii) development of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point plans by an independent expert, (iii) implementation of such plans, (iv) completion of additional employee training, and (v) approval to reopen by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “The failure to plan for and control the presence of bacteria and neurotoxins…
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have announced the latest developments in civil and criminal actions taken against 117 dietary supplement manufacturers and distributors as the result of a year-long investigation into allegedly tainted products. According to a November 17, 2015, DOJ press release, an 11-count indictment alleges that weight-loss and workout supplement manufacturer USPlabs LLC “engaged in a conspiracy to import ingredients from China using false certificates of analysis and false labeling and then lied about the source and nature of those ingredients.” The indictment claims the products in question were sold to retailers across the nation, with USPlabs asserting that it used natural plant extracts “when in fact it was using a synthetic stimulant manufactured in a Chinese chemical factory.” “The joint agency effort is a testament to our commitment to protecting consumers from potentially unsafe dietary supplements and products falsely…
In a recent Associated Press (AP) interview, U.S. Associate Attorney General Stuart Delery warns that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will pursue criminal penalties against companies that sell poisoned food. AP cites the recent prosecution of Peanut Corp. of America executives along with actions against the producers of tainted cantaloupe and eggs as evidence of the federal government’s increased focus on criminal enforcement of food safety laws. Plaintiffs’ attorney Bill Marler reportedly told the news organization that the DOJ’s actions were especially notable because the company executives charged in the prosecutions often did not know that their food products were tainted. “We have made a priority holding individuals and companies responsible when they fail to live up to their obligations that they have to protect the safety of the food that all of us eat,” Delery said. “The criminal prosecutions we bring should stand as a stark reminder of the…
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has published the antitrust complaint filed with a proposed final judgment and competitive impact statement, resolving its concerns that the acquisition of Grupo Modelo S.A.B. de C.V. by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV would violate section 7 of the Clayton Act. According to DOJ, the final judgment requires the companies “to divest Modelo’s entire U.S. business to Constellation Brands, Inc.,” or to an alternative purchaser if that transaction fails, to avoid a threat to the competitive U.S. beer market. Court approval of the agreement is required, and public comment is requested within 60 days of publication. See Federal Register, May 22, 2013.
In the wake of an antitrust lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) seeking to enjoin the acquisition of Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo, Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI) has reportedly agreed to sell a massive Modelo brewery, including full U.S. rights to the Corona® and Modelo® brands, to Constellation Brands, said to be the world’s largest wine company, for $2.9 billion. Additional information about the antitrust litigation appears in Issue 469 of this Update. The brewery, Compañía Cervecera de Coahuila, situated near the U.S.-Mexico border, produces Corona®, Corona Light® and Modelo Especial®. Constellation, which filed a motion to intervene in the DOJ lawsuit to protect its interests, stands to gain greater access to the American beer market under a revised agreement that would establish Constellation’s Crown Imports beer division as completely independent. Under the deal’s original terms, Constellation would have paid its joint venture partner Modelo $1.85 billion for the 50…
A federal court in Wisconsin has reportedly approved a consent decree between the U.S. government a Wisconsin livestock operation that allegedly violated federal drug laws by failing to maintain adequate animal treatment records, using new animal drugs illegally and failing to adequately distinguish between medicated and non-medicated animals for sale for use as human food. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially warned the owner of Nolan Livestock in 2004 that a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection revealed the presence of an illegal antibiotic in the edible tissues of its dairy cows. Under the consent decree, the owner must cease operations and then resume only when it has documented to FDA’s satisfaction that it has corrected the problems observed and has instituted appropriate procedures to prevent a recurrence. See U.S. Department of Justice News Release, June 26, 2012; FDA News Release, July 10, 2012.
