California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is seeking public comments on its proposal to establish a Proposition 65 maximum allowable dose level for sulfur dioxide of 220 micrograms per day. Comments should be submitted by August 20, 2012. Requests for a public hearing must be made no later than August 6. Sulfur dioxide preserves the color and flavor of dried, light-colored fruits, such as golden raisins and dried apricots, peaches, apples, pineapple, papaya, and mango, and acts as an antimicrobial agent. According to OEHHA’s draft interpretive guideline, a warning for exposure to sulfur dioxide from consumption of dried fruit is not required under Proposition 65 because reasonably anticipated rates of exposure “will be below the proposed Maximum Allowable Dose Level.” Sulfur dioxide was added to the list of chemicals known to the state to cause reproductive toxicity in July 2011; the particular type of toxicity found was…
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Dole Food Co. has reportedly signed a definitive settlement agreement that could conclude five U.S. lawsuits and 33 lawsuits filed in Nicaragua by banana plantation workers purportedly exposed to the agricultural chemical DBCP (1,2-Dibromo3-chloropropane). At stake are potential alleged damages in excess of $9 billion. According to Dole’s October 3, 2011, news release, the company “will not fund the settlement by making any payments until specific conditions are satisfied, including receiving a signed release from each plaintiff, dismissals of cases and judgments, and a good faith settlement determination by the Los Angeles Superior Court that is presiding over four of the U.S. cases.”
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. has filed a notice of dismissal in a Maryland federal court after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) agreed to lift the import alert it imposed on cantaloupes from Guatemala that had purportedly been linked to a Salmonella outbreak. Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., Inc. v. United States, No. 11-2338 (D. Md., dismissed September 27, 2011). Additional details about the case appear in Issue 407 of this Update. According to an FDA spokesperson, the agency lifted the restrictions on the basis of a company submission that included an independent audit showing that the Guatemalan farm was following good agricultural practices and tests indicating that none of the farm’s cantaloupes were positive for Salmonella. Public health advocates had reportedly called the lawsuit a bullying tactic, and Center for Science in the Public Interest’s Caroline Smith DeWaal said, “We would certainly hope that FDA has proof that…
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., Inc. has filed a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in a federal court in Maryland alleging that the agency lacked an adequate factual basis after a Salmonella outbreak in early 2011 to conclude that the company’s Guatemalan cantaloupe supplier was the source of the contamination. Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., Inc. v. United States, No. __ (D. Md., filed August 23, 2011). On the basis of that conclusion, FDA allegedly demanded that the company issue a recall or “suffer the consequences of an FDA consumer advisory questioning the wholesomeness of Del Monte cantaloupes.” The agency also imposed an import alert under which Del Monte is prohibited from importing cantaloupes from its Guatemalan source without proving the fruit is “negative” for Salmonella and other pathogens. According to Del Monte, “this prohibition will continue indefinitely into the future unless…
Watermelons have reportedly been bursting on farms in eastern China during recent wet weather, a phenomenon that state media attribute to the growth chemical forchlorfenuron. Jumping into a burgeoning watermelon market, approximately 20 first-time users of the chemical reportedly lost up to 115 acres after applying it too late in the season on an inappropriate variety of melon. Dubbed the “exploding melon” because of its tendency to split, most of the ruined fruit was apparently fed to fish and pigs. Legal in the United States on kiwi and grapes and allowed in China in general, forchlorfenuron is safe when used properly, according to a horticulture professor quoted by a news source. See Associated Press, May 17, 2011.
Nearly 700 heirs and estates of Colombian citizens allegedly killed by “a right-wing terrorist organization” that purportedly received financial and other support from Chiquita Brands International and its subsidiaries and affiliates have sued the companies seeking monetary, injunctive and declaratory relief. Does 1 through 677 v. Chiquita Brands Int’l, Inc., No. 11-00582 (D.D.C., filed March 17, 2011). The lawsuit involves claims and litigants not included in similar litigation filed in 2010. The plaintiffs, who claim to be the “family members of trade unionists, banana workers, political organizers, social activists, and others targeted and killed by terrorists,” allege that the defendants “funded, armed, and otherwise supported” a paramilitary organization “to produce bananas in an environment free from labor opposition and social disturbances.” According to the plaintiffs, the companies’ actions violated Colombian, U.S. and international law “prohibiting crimes against humanity, extrajudicial killing, torture, war crimes, and other abuses.”
A California court has issued a statement of decision in support of its July 2010 oral ruling vacating a judgment in favor of plaintiffs who alleged they had been rendered sterile from chemicals used on Nicaraguan banana plantations. Tellez v. Dole Food Co., Inc., No. BC 312852 (Cal. Super. Ct., Los Angeles Cty., statement filed March 11, 2011). According to the court, the plaintiffs’ attorneys “coached their clients to lie about working on banana farms, forged work certificates to create the appearance that their clients had worked on Dole contracted farms, and faked lab results to create the impression that their clients were sterile.” The court also stated that the attorneys “tampered with witnesses,” “threatened witnesses and took other actions to carry out the fraud.” The court held more than 20 hearings, presiding over a year-long evidentiary process, and “reviewed the sworn testimony of 27 protected witnesses describing the fraud at…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning letter to Chiquita Brands International, Inc. indicating that the company is violating the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by misbranding several of its pineapple products. According to FDA, because Pineapple Bites with Coconut® is made with a coconut-flavored spray, the product’s statement of identity and ingredient statement are false and misleading and should instead be identified as containing “coconut flavor.” The labeling also apparently states that the product contains antioxidants but does not include the names of the nutrients that are the subject of the claim. FDA further contends that the products include the claim “Plus Phytonutrients.” Because no recommended daily intake or daily recommended value has been established for phytonutrients, such nutrient content claims are not authorized, according to the agency. The products also apparently include the statement “Only 40 calories,” which FDA says implies that the products…
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the request by Gerber Products Co. to rehear the court’s April 2008 decision overturning the dismissal of putative class claims that the company’s Fruit Juice Snacks® packaging misled consumers. Williams v. Gerber Prods. Co., No. 06-55921 (9th Cir., amended opinion filed December 22, 2008). A detailed summary of the court’s April ruling appears in issue 258 of this Update. In its amended opinion, the court eliminated one sentence and reorganized two other sentences, but did not otherwise change its ruling that a detailed ingredients list in small type cannot shield a food manufacturer from liability for claims that its packaging misrepresents the quality of the product. “Instead, reasonable consumers expect that the ingredient list contains more detailed information about the product that confirms other representations on the packaging.” The product at issue, intended for toddlers, is sold in a package with images of…
