Wegmans Recalls Fresh Anaheim Peppers Due to Salmonella Risk

Batch/UPC Code:  Anaheim peppers sold since June 11, 2009.

Reason for Recall:  Wegmans has removed fresh Anaheim peppers from its Produce departments due to the possibility of salmonella contamination. The FDA is currently investigating the situation.

If you still have Anaheim peppers, please throw them away. Do not return them to the store. You may go to the service desk for information on receiving a refund.

No indication of illnesses yet.

Posted on July 3, 2009 by Bill Marler
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Just in Time for the 4th of July Weekend Another Warning About the Meat We Eat - NPR Interview of Marler

Health officials with The Atlanta based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say at least twelve people have been hospitalized in connection with a possible E. coli outbreak in beef. WGPB's John Sepulvado reports some three hundred eighty thousand pounds (actually 420,000) of beef have been recalled in connection to the outbreak:

Colorado's JBS Swift Beef Company processed the suspect meat in April, and the recall began last week. While many national grocery chains have begun pulling meat from the shelves, some stores and vendors that sell JBS products have not been identified publicly. Food safety advocates, like Seattle based attorney Bill Marler, are urging federal authorities to reveal those vendors as the July 4th holiday approaches.

We know that this meat has gone to every state and internationally, we know it has sickened at least twenty three people in nine states, we as the public have an absolute right to know where this meat went.

Marler represents two men (actually kids) who suffered kidney failure (HUS) after eating the meat. Federal officials have ten days from the date of the recall to compile a list of all the vendors---meaning by law, that list must be finished by July 3rd.

Posted on July 3, 2009 by Bill Marler
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JBS Swift and FSIS Name Names - Retail Stores That Received E. coli Beef

It really is a bit hard to imagine what today was like for JBS Swift and the FSIS - checking the list of retailers that might have received the 210 Tons of E. coli O157:H7 meat.  This morning a few names trickled out - this evening a torrent, tomorrow a flood?  Here is the most recent list:

Price Chopper

Hannaford

Stop & Shop

Food 4 Less

Fry's

Smith's

Costco

Sams Club

Kroger

SAV a Lot

Knight Super Foods #4

Weldon's Meat Market

Jasper Mercantile

Keeney's Food Mart

Sweetbay

All DAY AM PM MART

Hobby's Hoagies Produce

SHRTN HTL Produce

Giant

Here is the most recent list (sure to expand in the coming days):

Posted on July 2, 2009 by Bill Marler
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Interview with James F. Neale, Esquire - Food Illness Defense Guy

I got the heads-up that Jim had been interviewed by Law 360 and actually said something nice about me. Thinking that it could not be so – since I once suggested that his skills as a defense lawyer reminded me of the kids that looked so closely at the details that “they burned the wings off of small insects with a magnifying glass."  Now, I feel both bad and a bit humbled. Here is part of his interview:

Q: Outside your own firm, name one lawyer who's impressed you and tell us why.

A: I can think of two from whom I’ve learned a great deal.

Leo Knowles supervises litigation as a senior vice president for ConAgra Foods Inc. I have never seen him do anything short of the right thing for his client and its customers.

He’s also taught me how much a lawyer can say without opening his mouth. As a group, lawyers talk far too much and listen far too little. Leo is different than the rest of us in that regard. I have promised myself to be more like him in that sense.

Bill Marler of Marler Clark in Seattle is perhaps the nation’s best known attorney representing food borne illness claimants. While he and I have often disagreed, he has a tremendous amount of integrity, and has never, ever failed to put his clients’ interests first.

He also understands and respects the science involved in a case and is intellectually honest enough to let the scientific facts define a particular outbreak, even when that definition may seem unfavorable to him personally.

If I needed an attorney to represent a family member in a food borne illness case, Bill is the first person I would call.

Well, I certainly agree with him about Mr. Knowles.

Posted on July 2, 2009 by E. coli Attorney
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72 People Linked to Nationwide Nestle Cookie Dough E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak

We have been retained by 20 of these linked cases (4 HUS) and have thus far filed suit in 3 cases.  We have not filed any suits this week waiting to see if Nestle will offer to pay the acute phase medical expense and wage loss of its customers.  From the CDC last night:

72 persons infected with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 with a particular DNA fingerprint have been reported from 30 states. Of these, 51 have been confirmed by an advanced DNA test as having the outbreak strain; these confirmatory test results are pending on the others. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: Arizona (2), California (3), Colorado (6), Connecticut (1), Delaware (1), Georgia (1), Iowa (2), Illinois (5), Kentucky (2), Massachusetts (4), Maryland (2), Maine (3), Minnesota (6), Missouri (1), Montana (1), North Carolina (2), New Hampshire (2), New Jersey (1), Nevada (2), New York (1), Ohio (3), Oklahoma (1), Oregon (1), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (1), Texas (3), Utah (4), Virginia (2), Washington (6), and Wisconsin (1).

Ill persons range in age from 2 to 65 years; however, 65% are less than 19 years old; 71% are female. Thirty-four persons have been hospitalized, 10 developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS); none have died. Reports of these infections increased above the expected baseline in May and continue into June.

In an epidemiologic study, ill persons answered questions about foods consumed during the days before becoming ill and investigators compared their responses to those of persons of similar age and gender previously reported to State Health Departments with other illnesses. Preliminary results of this investigation indicate a strong association with eating raw prepackaged cookie dough. Most patients reported eating refrigerated prepackaged Nestle Toll House cookie dough products raw.

On June 29, 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that a culture of a sample of prepackaged Nestle Toll House refrigerated cookie dough currently under recall yielded E. coli O157:H7. The contaminated sample was collected at the firm on June 25, 2009. Further laboratory testing is underway to determine whether the E. coli strain in the product matched the strain causing the outbreak.

Posted on July 2, 2009 by E. coli Attorney
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"Hot off the Grill" in Time for 4th of July Weekend - FSIS List of Retail Outlets that Received JBS Swift E. coli Meat

A few days before many of us light up the barbeque, JBS Swift and the FSIS finally publish the list of retailers who received the tainted-meat (click on below).

Frankly, the retailer names had trickled out over the last few days as responsible stores alerted thier customers.  Whats a bit odd, it that the location of the stores that received the meat do not seem to completely match up to where the illnesses are located.  According to the CDC, twenty three persons infected with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 with a particular "DNA fingerprint" have been reported from 9 states. Of these, 17 have been confirmed by an advanced DNA test as having the outbreak strain; confirmatory tests are pending on others. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: California (4), Maine (1), Michigan (6), Minnesota (1), New Hampshire (1), New Jersey (2), New Mexico (1), New York (1) and Wisconsin (6).  So, begs the question?  "Where is ALL of the beef?"

Posted on July 2, 2009 by E. coli Lawyer
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California, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Wisconsin Report 23 E. coli O157:H7 Sicknesses Linked to JBS Swift - When will FSIS Release the Names of Stores Where Meat Was Sold?

On June 24, FSIS issued a notice about a recall of 41,280 pounds of beef products from JBS Swift Beef Company that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. On June 28, the recall was expanded to include 380,000 pounds of assorted pieces of beef (beef primal products) from the same company.

The CDC reports today that twenty three persons infected with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 with a particular "DNA fingerprint" have been reported from 9 states. Of these, 17 have been confirmed by an advanced DNA test as having the outbreak strain; confirmatory tests are pending on others. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: California (4), Maine (1), Michigan (6), Minnesota (1), New Hampshire (1), New Jersey (2), New Mexico (1), New York (1) and Wisconsin (6).

Among 17 ill persons for whom hospitalization status is known, 12 (70%) were hospitalized. Two patients developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).

Now, a week into the recall FSIS and JBS Swift Beef has not disclosed the names of all stores that received the E. coli-tainted beef.  Why?  As I said to ABC News:

But Bill Marler, an attorney focused on food poisoning cases with the Seattle-based law firm Marler Clark, said if the FSIS waits 10 days, the information would be of little help to consumers who have already prepared for the holiday weekend -- even if the FSIS is following the rule.

"It just seems inconceivable to me that they can't release this information more timely so people who have this in their refrigerator know what to do with it or know what not to do with it," Marler said.

"Whether they're absolutely following the rule or not, this is the kind of information that JBS Swift should have at their fingertips," he added.

Posted on July 1, 2009 by E. coli Attorney
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