A putative class action has apparently been filed in a federal court in Illinois by six named plaintiffs who allegedly became ill after consuming Salmonella-tainted eggs from Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms in Iowa. The plaintiffs’ attorney has reportedly been given permission to inspect the farms for evidence. According to a news source, the plaintiffs allege that the companies’ negligence is responsible for the outbreak and suggest that more than the known 1,500 individuals sickened by the contaminated eggs could be class members. In a related development, news sources report that Wright County Egg had dozens of positive results for Salmonella from swabs taken on conveyor belts and in other facility areas as early as 2008 and failed to notify local, state or federal officials. Animal safety experts reportedly called such contamination “surprising” and suggested that repeated positives indicate the company was not “getting to the root cause of what the…
Category Archives 7th Circuit
A federal court in Illinois has dismissed claims that companies failing to disclose that the fiber in their snack-bar and yogurt products is “non-natural” chicory root-based inulin, which allegedly lacks the same health benefits as “natural” fiber, have violated state consumer fraud laws. Turek v. General Mills, Inc., No. 09-7038 (N.D. Ill., decided September 1, 2010). According to the court, the plaintiff’s claims are expressly preempted by the federal Nutritional Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) because they would impose requirements under state law that are not identical to federal law requirements. The products at issue are labeled with statements about the percent of daily fiber they contain or grams of fiber provided per serving. Discussing the application of preemption provisions in various federal laws, the court also sets out all of the federal regulations pertaining to fiber in foods. The court concludes, “plaintiff wants to change the labeling on defendants’…
Federal officials have indicted executives of a German import company, a Chinese national and a number of companies, charging them with importing honey from China into the United States by illegal means that avoided the payment of duties and allowed product adulterated with antibiotics to enter the country. U.S. v. Wolff, No. 08-417 (N.D. Ill., filed August 31, 2010). The honey was purportedly shipped through other countries, such as South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, India, the Philippines, Indonesia and Russia, mislabeled and then shipped to the United States, thus avoiding some $78 million in anti-dumping duties applicable to Chinese-origin honey. The conspiracy allegedly began in early 2002 and ended in early 2009. The indictment includes 44 counts of illegal activity, including falsifying documents and placing into interstate commerce food with unsafe additives, specifically, the antibiotics norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin. Meanwhile, a coalition of honey producers has reportedly called on the industry to…
According to a news source, a man who worked in a Chicago-area plant for eight years and was diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans has been awarded $30.4 million on claims that workplace exposure to the butter-flavoring chemical diacetyl left him with 25 percent of normal lung capacity that will require a lung transplant within the next 10 years. Solis v. BASF Corp., No. ___ (Ill. Cir. Ct., Cook Cty.) The largest verdict previously awarded in a similar case was $20 million to a former popcorn plant worker in Missouri. Plaintiff Gerardo Solis, 45, was represented by Independence, Missouri, attorney Ken McClain. See The Joplin Globe, August 16, 2010.
A federal court in Illinois has dismissed claims that Coca-Cola labeling for its “classic” and “original formula” soda products violated consumer fraud laws because the products contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which did not exist when the beverage was first sold in the 1880s. Kremers v. Coca-Cola Company, No. 09-333 (S.D. Ill., decided April 27, 2010). One named plaintiff in this putative class action apparently testified during her deposition that she knew the products contained HFCS as early as the 1990s. The court found the litigation time-barred as to her claims. Another named plaintiff testified that he did not realize the product’s label included the phrase “original formula” until counsel brought it to his attention. The court found that he failed to establish an essential element of his deception claim. Because both testified that they continued to buy the product despite knowing that its sweetener differed from the formulation sold…
A federal court in Illinois has dismissed putative class claims alleging that Denny’s Corp. fails to inform consumers that some of its menu items contain excessive levels of salt. Ciszewski v. Denny’s Corp., No. 09-5355 (N.D. Ill., decided April 7, 2010). Additional information about the case can be found in issue 318 of this Update. The court determined that the named plaintiff failed to sufficiently plead a violation of the state’s consumer fraud statute because he failed to identify any particular deceptive communication generated by Denny’s. Indeed, plaintiff made clear that his claim was based on alleged deceptive omissions. Because Illinois law requires “some communication from the defendant, either a communication containing a deceptive misrepresentation or one with a deceptive omission,” the court ruled that he had “failed to plead the circumstances constituting the fraud with sufficient particularity.” With the fraud claim dismissed, the court also dismissed derivative unjust enrichment…
A federal court in Wisconsin has reportedly denied the motion to dismiss filed by Dean Foods Co. in antitrust litigation brought by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the attorneys general of three states, challenging the company’s acquisition of a milk producer in 2009. U.S. v. Dean Foods Co., No. 10-59 (E.D. Wis., filed January 2010). More details about the case can be found in issue 335 of this Update. While the court’s ruling rejects Dean Foods’ claim that the complaint lacked sufficient details, the court expressed some concerns about the government’s pleading, criticizing “structural issues” and “a lack of specificity in content.” A Dean Foods spokesperson was quoted as saying,” We believe our acquisition of Foremost Farms is promoting competition in the region and has already produced benefits for consumers and farmers. We continue to believe that the government’s complaint against us is unfounded.” Noting the court’s “recognition…
A federal court in Illinois has dismissed with prejudice the second amended complaint filed in putative class litigation alleging that a chicken processing company violated state consumer fraud and protection laws by selling its whole chickens with the extra giblets that it cannot sell with its cut-up chicken portions or as pet food. Nieto v. Perdue Farms, Inc., No. 08-07399 (N.D. Ill., filed March 17, 2010). According to the complaint, the defendant placed more than one heart, liver, gizzard, or neck in the whole chickens the company sold, thereby increasing the total weight of a whole chicken and “effectively forcing consumers to subsidize [defendant’s] costs of disposing of the extra giblets.” The named plaintiff also alleged that the company concealed its policy of including the extra offal when communicating with customers “through advertising generally and at the point of sale.” Finding that it had jurisdiction over the claims under the…
A putative class action has been filed in a Madison County, Illinois, court alleging that a fast food chain has fraudulently advertised its Super Stacked™ sub sandwiches “as containing ‘double portions of meat’” compared with its standard sandwiches, when they do not have double the meat. Williams v. Kahala Corp., No. 10-L-166 (Ill. Cir. Ct., Madison Cty., filed February 12, 2010). According to the complaint, while defendant charges a premium for its Super Stacked™ sandwiches, they “do not have double the protein” because “they do not have double the meat.” The plaintiffs allege that a 12-inch BLIMPIE Best™ sandwich has 50 grams of protein, while its Super Stacked™ counterpart “contains only 73 grams of protein.” They also allege that some Super Stacked™ sandwiches have no “regular” counterpart with which consumers can compare. Seeking to certify a class of all persons who purchased a Super Stacked™ sandwich from Blimpie restaurants in…
A number of microwave popcorn workers and their spouses have reportedly filed a complaint against a flavoring company in a federal court in Illinois, alleging personal injuries, loss of consortium and wrongful death from exposure to the butter flavoring diacetyl. Barker v. Int’l Flavors & Fragrances, Inc., No. 10-48 (S.D. Ill., filed January 21, 2010). The workers were apparently employed by AgriLink, a microwave popcorn manufacturer; they claim that diacetyl exposure can cause the lung disease bronchiolitis obliterans. According to the complaint, the defendant misrepresented the chemical’s safety and hid research on its risks from users. The plaintiffs apparently allege negligence and products liability and are seeking compensatory damages, attorney’s fees and costs. See Mealey’s Food Liability, February 2, 2010.
