Seeking “substantial damages,” a company that makes wild bird food has filed a lawsuit against a supplier that allegedly sold it peanut by-products originating from the Georgia facility linked to the Salmonella contamination outbreak. The Scotts Co., LLC v. Cereal Byproducts Co., No. 09-108 (S.D. Ohio, filed February 17, 2009). According to the complaint, the defendant sold and shipped peanut by-products to the plaintiff in December 2008 and January 2009, after it was known that the outbreak originated in the Blakely, Georgia, facility owned and operated by the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA), and repeatedly “made false representations” that the by-products did not come from a potentially contaminated PCA facility. The plaintiff was allegedly forced to recall its suet wild bird food products and incurred unspecified costs and injury to goodwill. The complaint alleges breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation and violations of Ohio’s deceptive trade practices law.
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South Korean regulators have reportedly detected a bacteria associated with infant meningitis and enteritis in a shipment of organic baby formula imported from France. The Korean National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service (NVRQS) identified Enterobacter sakazaki in formula originating with the Bordeaux-based manufacturer Vitagermine, which stated that its products passed EU standards before shipment. The World Health Organization has categorized E. sakazaki as a harmful bacteria capable of causing serious illness and fatalities in people with weakened immune systems and infants. South Korea has apparently imported eight shipments of Vitagermine formula weighing a total of 1,492 kilos since 2007, according to NVRQS, which noted that six of these shipments reached the market. Vitagermine has agreed to allow French authorities to conduct additional testing to ensure the safety of their product. See FoodProductionDaily.com, February 28, 2009.
The Peanut Corp. of America, whose Salmonella-tainted peanut butter and peanut paste products led to one of the largest food recalls in the United States, has reportedly filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in Virginia. The day it did so, Texas health officials apparently announced a recall of all products manufactured at the company’s peanut-processing facility in that state after discovering dead rodents, droppings and bird feathers in unsealed gaps above a food production area. A Virginia plant operated by the company has also been closed. A state agriculture spokesperson reportedly said that inspectors found minor problems at the facility in 2007 and 2008, including flaking paint and evidence of rodents. Food lawyer William Marler, who has sued the company on behalf of several families allegedly affected by the Salmonella outbreak, claimed that he has hired a law firm that helped him “manage both the Chi-Chi and Topps Bankruptcies,” and…
A subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee conducted a hearing February 11, 2009, to hear from victims, regulators and the individuals who own and operate the Georgia peanut processing facility responsible for the latest Salmonella outbreak. Titled, “The Salmonella Outbreak: The Continued Failure to Protect the Food Supply,” the hearing gave congressmen the opportunity to question Stewart Parnell who owns the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA) about the company’s practice of shipping contaminated product to food processors even after it had tested positive for Salmonella. Parnell and the man who managed the plant invoked their Fifth Amendment privilege and refused to answer questions, including whether they would eat the recalled products, which now number in excess of 1,800 items. The outbreak has reportedly sickened more than 600 in the United States and Canada, led to a suspected nine deaths and launched at least four personal injury lawsuits to date.…
Maple Leaf Foods Inc. has agreed to pay $25 million to settle class claims filed after ready-to-eat meats tainted with Listeria monocytogenes allegedly sickened dozens of Canadians and caused 20 deaths in 2008. The settlement, which must be approved by courts in several provinces, would provide an additional $2 million if needed to fully compensate those filing claims by the July 31, 2009, deadline. The company’s Web site explains the settlement’s terms and notes what those objecting to it can do. Approval hearings will be conducted on March 5, 10 and 20 in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Quebec, respectively.
Nebraska Beef, Ltd. has filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking a declaration that it was not responsible for the E. coli contamination that led to the recall of nearly 7 million pounds of beef in 2008. Nebraska Beef, Ltd. v. Meyer Foods Holdings, L.L.C., No. 09-43 (D. Neb., filed January 30, 2009). According to the complaint, the defendant provided the meat subject to the recall to Nebraska Beef for processing and shipping. When contaminants were found, the defendant informed Nebraska Beef that legal claims were being made against it and demanded indemnification from Nebraska Beef. Stating that it “expressly denies the Contamination originated at its processing plant; that it was negligent in its processing or handling of any cattle or product; or that it breached any of the terms of its agreement(s) with Meyer Natural Foods,” Nebraska Beef, which has also been sued over the incident, requests a judicial declaration as…
Food litigator William Marler has reportedly filed an amended complaint on behalf of a Vermont couple whose son was allegedly sickened and hospitalized following ingestion of a product containing Salmonella-tainted peanut butter. Meunier v. Peanut Corp. of Am., No. 09-12 (M.D. Ga., first amended complaint filed January 28, 2009). The plaintiffs are now seeking punitive damages for “willful concealment of known defects.” The amendment follows the release of a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection report showing that the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA) shipped products that tested positive for Salmonella after the company had the products retested and received negative test results. Marler was quoted as saying, “In 15 years of litigating food cases, this is one of the worst examples of corporate irresponsibility I have ever seen. Not only does the plant appear to have atrocious practices, but the product that seems to have repeatedly tested positive for Salmonella was shipped…
Food litigator William Marler discusses the 2006 spinach E. coli outbreak in this article, which provides an overview of the issues that plaintiffs’ lawyers should consider when they represent clients allegedly sickened by contaminated fresh produce. Among the issues flagged are (i) which entities are liable under a strict products liability scheme; (ii) what effect insurance and indemnity agreements will have on “the all-important questions of who is going to pay”; and (iii) whether the industry’s or individual corporation’s knowledge of the risk gives rise to the availability of punitive damages. The article concludes with a brief consideration of how the industry is regulated and why foodborne pathogens continue to sicken consumers. Marler argues that “the most expedient step in preventing another deadly foodborne illness outbreak like the 2006 Dole spinach outbreak is to push for greater corporate responsibility regarding the oversight of food producers. The lives of American consumers depend…
Food litigator William Marler has filed a second lawsuit against the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA) on behalf of a California family whose 3-year-old son allegedly fell ill and was hospitalized after eating Salmonella-contaminated peanut butter cracker sandwiches made with a PCA peanut butter product. Trone v. Peanut Corp. of Am., No. 09-418 (N.D. Cal., filed January 28, 2009). The outbreak, which has reportedly sickened more than 500 people across the United States and contributed to eight deaths, has led to one of the largest food recalls in the nation’s history. PCA expanded its recall from peanut butter and peanut paste to all peanuts and peanut products, including whole peanuts (dried, roasted or raw), granulated peanuts and peanut meal, processed in its Blakely, Georgia, facility since January 1, 2007. According to the PCA recall notice, the company sold its recalled products to institutions, food service industries and private label food companies in…
With hundreds of foods containing potentially contaminated peanut butter being recalled daily, plaintiffs’ lawyers across the nation have begun to file claims against producers, suppliers, retailers, and others in the supply chain. Food claims lawyer William Marler has reportedly brought an action against the Virginia-based Peanut Corp. of America on behalf of Vermont residents Gabrielle and Daryl Meunier whose 7-year-old son was among the nearly 500 people purportedly sickened by the Salmonella typhimurium traced to a Peanut Corp. processing plant in Georgia. According to a news source, the Meunier’s son spent six days in the hospital after consuming cheese and peanut butter crackers. A Minnesota-based food safety lawyer reportedly plans to file a claim against Peanut Corp. and its distributor, King Nut Companies, on behalf of the family of a 72-year-old woman who allegedly died in December 2008 after eating Salmonella-contaminated peanut butter served at a long-term care facility in Minnesota. In…
