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Archives for February 2008

E. coli "Beast Feast" in Alabama Church

Posted by E. coli Attorney on February 28, 2008

The Associated Press story caught my eye – “Several sick with E-Coli after "Beast Feast" at Mobile church.”

Several people, including a 7-year-old boy, have been hospitalized when they became sick with E. coli after eating food at a cookout known as the "Beast Feast" at a Fairhope church. As many as 20 others reported becoming ill after the cookout and potluck meal that was attended by 300 people on February 16. Eight stool cultures have tested positive for E. coli O157:H7.

Another Conference - at least it is in Arizona

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 28, 2008

I am at the Food-Borne Illness Litigation Conference being sponsored by the American Conference Institute. So far the conference has been very informative. Here is the description of the conference:

2007 was the year of the recall, with e-coli contamination increasing sharply in 2007 over the previous two years. And it’s not just beef recalls and e-coli contamination that are making the news… Peanut butter, spinach, pot pies and pizza; salmonella, listeria and other toxins… All kinds of food-borne illnesses and the ensuing litigation are on the rise, as experts point fingers at increased use of offshore food sources, a largely self-regulated industry, and other factors in an attempt to explain the sudden surge. It’s clearly a critical time for food companies, and the lawyers who advise them, to get valuable, practical information to enable you to minimize the likelihood of these situations and the ensuing litigation from occurring – and to manage the litigation appropriately when it arises.

To address these growing concerns, American Conference Institute has developed this critical conference on Preventing and Managing Food-Borne Illness Litigation. For this unique event, we’ve assembled a multi disciplinary faculty of epidemiologists, microbiologists, key regulators and top litigators in the area, and an agenda that covers all the issues that arise in litigating and settling these complex cases. Get strategic and practical insights into:

Understanding the science behind tracing and identifying a pathogen – so you can make or refute the causal link in your case

Getting back on track with consumers after a crisis:getting out the right message

Using Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests:why they are such an effective discovery tool in food borne illness cases

Deposing food-borne illness experts: tips and techniques

Effect of insurance coverage issues on how you proceed in a third party action

Analysis of where plaintiffs been most successful in food-borne illness class actions and MDL proceedings

Another Day in the Other Washington

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 26, 2008

Well, I landed in Washington DC at about 2:00 AM this morning after testifying in Sacramento on Monday. The hearing this morning in front of House Energy and Commerce went well. I think if you poke around on the committee's website you can find the video of the hearing. Here is some news coverage of my tour:

"Are we better off than we were 100 years ago" - Bill Marler poses that question about food safety, testifying before Committee on Energy and Commerce

"It is time to adequately fund our health and safety authorities to help businesses protect their consumers," testified attorney William Marler.

Attorney William Marler says, "The most important thing is to work with industry, work with consumers, to build safety nets."

William Marler, a Seattle lawyer who represents victims of foodborne illnesses, however, suggested USDA might have actually gone too far with the Hallmark recall. "Although stunned by the video … am more stunned that the recall has ballooned to 143 million pounds of meat and is quickly encompassing products that might contain trace amounts of the meat. No people have been sickened. I wonder if resources are better spent elsewhere," he testified before the committee.

"We have so many other pressing issues in food safety," said Seattle attorney William Marler, one of the country's leading plaintiff's lawyers on E. coli cases. The government's money and effort should be targeted at preventing terrorist attacks on the nation's food supply, he said.

"The risk of human illness is low," said attorney William Marler who represented some of the 700 people who got sick or died in the infamous Jack-in-the-Box E. Coli outbreak in 1993. "No people have been sickened, and I wonder if resources might be better spent elsewhere," he said. Marler did say the federal inspection program is inadequate.

Bill Marler, a Seattle lawyer who represents food poisoning victims, told a House committee Tuesday that the recall appeared to be overkill given that no one had gotten sick and that it encompassed products that could contain only trace amounts of the meat.??"I think we could spend those resources wisely in other areas," he said, referring to the cost of the recall.

William Marler, a trial lawyer who represents victims of food-borne illnesses, described current inspections as "scattered and infrequent" and warned the food system is even vulnerable to terrorists.

Frankly, I am beat, so I simply lifted from the Seattle PI Blog what they lifted from my testimony today:

Salmonella, E. Coli and now 144 million pounds of unfit-to-eat beef, spark anger on Capitol Hill

The House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, trying to find an answer to the growing reports of tainted and deadly food, found themselves dealing with a full plate of potentially lethal problems today.

E. coli in bagged spinach sickened 204 people and killed three.

Salmonella found in tomatoes sickened 183 people.

Lettuce contaminated with E. coli at Taco Bell and Taco John restaurants sickened 152 people.

Peter Pan peanut butter contaminated with Salmonella sickened 425 people.

100 brands of tainted pet food were recalled after sickening and killing thousands of pets.

A nationwide recall of fresh spinach occurred following discovery of salmonella in a test batch.

Frozen pot pies carrying salmonella were recalled after illnesses were reported in 31 States.

And, of course, the nearly 144 million pounds of beef were recalled by Westland/Hallmark Meat Packing Company after being determined to be unfit for human consumption.

Lawmakers heard testimony from representative of the nation's largest food producers and a Seattle lawyer who has handled hundreds of victims of a broken food safety system.

"It is clear our regulatory system is broken. I urge industry to provide serious recommendations and, more importantly, strongly support legislation that will ensure food safety. The time has passed for half measures or asking regulators to do more with less. Our health is at stake," said Rep. John Dingell, the Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Seattle lawyer William Marler gave the lawmaker an up close and personal view of many victims of food poisoning that he had encountered.

Marler, who has been involved in food safety litigation since the '70s, offered the committee specific recommendation on how the nation's food safety system should be improved.

Create a local, state and national public health system that catches outbreaks before they balloon into a personal and business catastrophe, he said. He explained that everyone believed that the Jack in the Box outbreak that killed four and sickened scores of others started in Seattle in January 1993. But he said it actually began three months earlier "when another child died and another 30 people were sickened in Southern California. He said E. coli was not a reportable illness at the time, "the death and illnesses were not recognized as an outbreak and the contaminated meat was shipped to Seattle."

He said that food must be inspected and sampled before it is consumed. He reminded the committee members that the GAO has warned in the past that our food sampling and inspection is so scattered and infrequent that there is little chance of detecting microscopic E. coli or any other pathogen for that matter.

Consumers, he said, need to know what is being recalled. Voluntary recalls don't work.

Marler warned that turf wars and split responsibilities are gutting the effectiveness of the nation's food safety system and the three federal agencies responsible - CDC, FDA and USDA – should have the food safety mandates merged and properly staffed and funded.

Senator Florez Investigates Nation's Largest Beef Recall

Posted by Food Poisoning Lawyer on February 25, 2008

I was the first speaker today at Senator Dean Florez's hearing into the lapses that led to the largest beef recall our nation has ever experienced. My written testimony is here. Reports this week indicate that more than 50 million of the 143 million pounds of beef recalled were distributed to schools across the nation through a federal nutrition program, and 20 million of those were consumed by students.

The Senate Select Committee on Food-borne Illness will focus its inquiry on how California’s food safety system allowed “downer” cattle deemed “unfit for human” consumption into the food chain. Officials from the California Department of Public Health (DPH) and the California Department of Food & Agriculture will be asked to report what additional steps they are taking to prevent potentially contaminated meat from entering our food supply in the future.

The Committee will explore the roles of federal and state officials in these tasks, and what the state is doing to fill the obvious gaps in the federal system. The magnitude of the recent recall, dating all the way back to 2006, indicates that the federal inspection system has been deficient for some time.

The state’s failure to catch the misconduct over a two year period is another crucial shortcoming which must be addressed. To that end, Florez has proposed the installation of cameras in plants like Westland/Hallmark to document that cattle intended for human consumption are healthy enough to walk unaided to the slaughterhouse. Westland/Hallmark, which installed such cameras only after its plant was shut down, has declined to send a representative to Monday’s hearing.

Officials with DPH will also be asked to answer questions regarding the implementation of SB 611, which requires notification of health officials in the event of a recall.

Florez, an outspoken advocate of improved food safety precautions, has also called on the Governor to reimburse cash-strapped school districts their expenses from the recall, to be recouped from Westland/Hallmark through the efforts of California’s Attorney General.

“Schools shouldn't have to go through a complicated process of getting reimbursed, and I hope this bill will help cut through some of the bureaucracy,” Florez said. “We are facing tough cuts as it is. Student’s educational opportunities shouldn’t be further stifled because of this company’s actions.”

Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co to Shut Down ?In Wake of Massive Recall

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 23, 2008

The Wall Street Journal reported this morning on something that probably does not come as a surprise to those who watched the video and have seen the largest recall in US History - Hallmark/Westland will be closing its doors.

250 workers have been laid off. On top of the horrible video and the massive recall, now the USDA said Thursday that it intends to require that Hallmark/Westland, a leading supplier to the National School Lunch Program, pay for the costs associated with destroying and replacing meat submitted to the program. In the quote that says it all:

"If the USDA wants payment back, we're dead meat. We're done," said Mr. Magidow, 46 years old, who has worked at the company for more than 15 years. "There's no way we could pay it all back."

Following last years bankruptcy of Topps after a 21.7 million pound recall, and Hudson Foods closing its doors after recalling 25 million pounds of hamburger in 1997 in the largest U.S. meat recall after E. coli was found in the ground beef, it should not be a surprise that recalling 143 million pounds of meat would have some negative impact.

The downer cow problem is not new. A 2006 audit (PDF) by the USDA's inspector general found downer cows were still being processed for food and that USDA's policy was inconsistent. At two of 12 plants visited from June 2004 to April 2005, downer cattle were slaughtered for food. One facility processed 27 of them, the other slaughtered two.

But, was this massive recall really necessary? Rumor has it that this massive meat recall will be expanded to food items – tomato sauce, burritos, pizzas – what else? To date, there are no ill people. Is this really necessary – especially the potential for an expanded one. As I said in USA Today - Impact of beef recall widens; soups, sauces affected:

The breadth of affected products took even department critics by surprise. "It's almost overkill," says William Marler, a leading plaintiff's attorney in E. coli cases. Given the low risk, destroying so much food "is just an enormous waste of resources," he says.

"Recalls should be reserved for products that put the public at risk, and this isn't it," Marler says.

See the below email I was inadvertently forwarded:

From: Petersen, Kenneth
Sent: Thu Feb 21 17:36:43 2008
Subject: FW: Hallmark Recall follow up
This information was also shared with DMs.
***********************
Just confirming some notes I made on our earlier discussion re: Hallmark Recall. We are effecting the recall in accordance with Directive 8080.1.

1. As Alameda District indicated on the call, by now, the primary consignees of Hallmark have been notified of the recalled products that they received. Alameda will be verifying with Hallmark that such notification has actually occurred. District Offices should be promptly deploying appropriate personnel to verify that these firms have notified their consignees, controlled available product on premise, and collect any subsequent distribution information. Promptly notify Alameda DRO of subsequent distribution locations
2. Firms with large distribution should focus their initial notification on products produced since, approximately, July 1, 2007.
3. Firms with receipt of Hallmark product or distribution that pre-dates July 1, 2007, may request a reasonable time to gather that information. Reasonable would be up to 7 calendar days.
4. Firms, at any level of distribution, are not expected to notify consignees if the distributed products from that firm have a documented use by date that has expired. Products with recently expired use by dates, such as those within the last 30 days, will necessitate supporting documentation to substantiate the lack of consignee notification. For products without a use by date, supporting decision-making documentation, such as customer use practices, or consignee throughput, may also be used to support industry notification decisions. Inspection personnel will verify acceptable decision-making associated with consignee notification.
5. In accordance with 8080.1, down stream consignees are to follow the notification from the supplying firm.
6. Firms that believe their final product formulation contains an "infinitesimal" quantity of the product associated with the recall may submit a justification to the district manager to support that decision. Small measurable quantities (e.g., 0.5%) would not be considered "infinitesimal".

All for a Class Two Recall. Hmmm, what's really going on here?

E. coli Tainted lettuce linked to Taco John's grown on Buttonwillow farm

Posted by E. coli Attorney on February 22, 2008

A report by food safety investigators have linked a Kern County farm with an E. coli outbreak in 2006 that sickened dozens of people in the Midwest. Officials from the California Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration reported that tainted lettuce served at Taco John's restaurants in Iowa and Minnesota came from Wegis Ranch in Buttonwillow. More than 80 people became sick with E. coli infections after eating the lettuce. Investigators said they found positive samples of E. coli at Wegis Ranch and at two neighboring dairies. See more from the Bakersfield Californian.

Hallmark and Westland Saga Continues to Expand

Posted by Listeria Attorney on February 22, 2008

I spoke with Julie Schmit of USA TODAY during a layover in Dallas on my way home about her story this morning “Feds still tracing millions of pounds of recalled meat.” She reported that: “Federal officials said Thursday that more than a third of the meat recalled Sunday in the largest meat recall ever went to federal nutrition programs, and that 15.5 million pounds of that are still being traced. About 50.3 million of the 143 million pounds of meat recalled by Westland/Hallmark Meat were sold to federal programs, including the school lunch program. Of that, 19.6 million pounds were consumed and 15.2 million pounds have been found, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.” Although the size of the recall matters, here is the shocking part:

The department also said that all products that contained any of the recalled meat should not be consumed. That could include many more millions of pounds of product, ranging from spaghetti sauce to canned ravioli.

As I told her, extending the recall to include comingled and finished products is unheard of given no reports of illness and no hard evidence that the abused cattle were suffering from “Mad Cow” – cautious and safe, but unheard of.

"It's really unprecedented given what appears to be no illnesses and an exceedingly low risk," said William Marler, a prominent plaintiff's attorney.

Workers arrested in Chino slaughterhouse case

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on February 21, 2008

Still going after the small fish?

The Associated Press reported this evening that a second fired worker has been arrested in a case involving alleged abuses at a Chino slaughterhouse that led to the nation's largest beef recall. Luis Sanchez surrendered to Chino police Wednesday and pleaded not guilty Thursday to three misdemeanors involving the illegal movement of sick or injured cattle. Prosecutors say he remains in custody in lieu of $15,000 bail and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing next week. An arrest warrant was issued Friday for Sanchez and his Westland/Hallmark Meat Company co-worker Daniel Ugarte Navarro. Navarro was taken into custody previously and released on bail. He faces five felony counts of animal abuse in addition to three misdemeanors.

I say what these two workers did (caught on tape) was horrible. But come on, who believes that they abused these animals on their own? What gain do they personally have? What they did was wrong, but who told them to do it?

Westland and Hallmark Recalled Beef Went to Schools

Posted by Bill Marler on February 21, 2008

As a human (yes, lawyers are), I was appalled by the treatment of the “downer” cows caught on film. The outpouring of emotional comments on my blog over the last week should make government and the beef industry to take a hard look at what they are doing to ensure both a safe and humane beef supply.

Although there are no reported illnesses from E. coli or Salmonella, and the risk of developing "Mad Cow" is thirty years away (and an extremely low risk at that), what has happened is a mess - a very large one. Learning today according to the AP, that “more than a third of the 143 million pounds of California beef recalled last week went to school lunch programs, with at least… 20 million pounds… eaten, 15 million pounds… on hold at storage facilities and 15 million pounds… still being traced,” should be concerning to everyone. Perhaps this is a good time to look at a little bit of history of problems with school lunches.

Congress created the NSLP over 50 years ago, as a measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well being of the Nation's children. It was a direct response to the fact that many of the young men responding to the draft call in WWII were rejected due to conditions arising from serious nutritional deficiencies. The 1946 National School Lunch Act was enacted to provide the opportunity for children across the United States to receive at least one healthy meal every school day. It is presently an $8 billion program.

The NSLP provides per meal cash reimbursements as entitlements to schools to provide nutritious meals to children. The NSLP provides school children with one-third or more of their Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for key nutrients. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) research indicates that children who participate in school lunch have superior nutritional intakes compared to those who do not.

The NSLP provided meals to 26.1 million children in 1998. More than 15 million low-income children receive free or reduced-price school lunches daily. Over 93,000 schools currently participate in the NSLP. About 95 percent of all elementary and secondary school students are enrolled in participating schools.

The USDA spends over $200 million annually buying over 200 million pounds of meat through its commodities program to supply, in part, the NSLP and to support food prices when the market has gone soft. An arm of USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Services (FSIS), has the responsibility of inspecting plants that supply meat to the NSLP and the public at large.

In most States, the meat is distributed by the USDA to the Superintendent of Public Education (SPI) through the Child Nutrition Program (CNP), at no cost to school districts throughout the state.

Overview of Media Attention to Illnesses Related to School Lunches through 2004

Castleberry's Botulism Lawsuit Filed - Illnesses reported in Indiana, Texas and Ohio

Posted by Botulism Attorney on February 21, 2008

Although I am down in the “Big Easy” at the GMA’s 2008 Food Claims and Litigation Conference, I still had the time to edit and file what appears to be the second lawsuit against Castleberry’s for producing Botulism contaminated food.

According to the CDC, as of August 24, 2007, eight cases of botulism have been reported from Indiana (2 cases), Texas (3 cases), and Ohio (3 cases). The illness onset dates range from June 29 to August 7, 2007. All eight persons were reported to have consumed hot dog chili sauce made by Castleberry's Food Company. In July 2007, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration facilitated the recall of 721,239 pounds of canned meat that were identified as possibly carrying the botulinum toxin as the result of an equipment malfunction, according to the USDA. The equipment malfunction was discovered during an investigation into an outbreak of illness in Indiana and Texas. Since then, the recall has been expanded to 10 million pounds of product coming out of the faulty Augusta, Ga., facility.

Botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. Clostridium botulinum is the name of a group of bacteria commonly found in soil. It is an anaerobic, gram-positive, spore-forming rod that produces a potent neurotoxin. These rod-shaped organisms grow best in low oxygen conditions. The bacteria form spores, which allow them to survive in a dormant state until exposed to conditions that can support their growth.

Some of the coverage of the filings underscores how dangerous Botulism can be. Cory Frolik’s article in the Sandusky Register - "Federal suit filed over tainted food"

Carl Ours Jr. won't be eating Castleberry Food Co.'s chili again.

"He was in bad shape ," said his 72-year-old father, Carl Ours Sr. of Norwalk. "It was a life-or-death thing….” The elder Ours described his son's trauma as excruciating. He said it looked for a long and bleak stretch of time that his son would die. He holds out little hope that his son will ever completely recover.

The Plot Thickens - More Westland and Hallmark Meat to be Recalled?

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 21, 2008

In a conference call with industry this morning, FSIS announced that it has changed its position in regard to further processed products that contain any amount of recalled Westland beef. Whereas the Agency had stated on Tuesday that manufacturers of products in which Westland beef was commingled with other beef would not have to notify their consignees to return or destroy product, the Agency has now reconsidered and reversed that position. The new determination is that all further processed products containing any amount of Westland beef will need to be recalled and destroyed. A written statement on this position was promised by later today.

Other interesting points from the conference call:

* The Agency plans to follow its past practices for recalls that originate with a slaughter firm; the primary mechanism for verifying the recall is through recall effectiveness checks, with Agency personnel contacting each of 72 initial consignees and then each subsequent consignee to assure that at each level notification has been made to consignees of the need to return or destroy product. The Agency anticipates that 6-8 weeks could be required to complete its effectiveness checks for this recall.

* In line with past practice, the Agency does not intend to list on its website the further processed products that are being recalled.

* The Agency will expect each consignee to concentrate its recall efforts on product made from Westland beef that was received in the past 6 months and then to focus on other products that are still within their use-by dates. Records should be kept of determinations that products would no longer be expected to be on market shelves.

* A question was raised about whether some product listed in the Westland recall notice on February 17 was not actually slaughtered at the implicated establishment and therefore perhaps should not have been included in the recall. The Agency is checking into that possibility.

* Companies that received beef directly from Westland in the past two years should have already received a recall notification letter from the firm. The Agency advised that firms who suspect that they received product that will need to be recalled, but have not yet received such a letter, should put the product on hold.

Mr. Bill Goes to Washington - Again

Posted by Bill Marler on February 20, 2008

NEWS RELEASE
Committee on Energy and Commerce
Rep. John D. Dingell, Chairman

For immediate release: February 19, 2008
Contact: Jodi Seth or Alex Haurek, 202-225-5735

MEDIA ADVISORY:
Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee
Hearing on Food Safety

Washington, DC – On the heels of the latest major meat recall, the Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations announced today that it will hold a hearing next week on food safety with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of major food producing companies testifying.

The hearing, entitled “Contaminated Food: Private Sector Accountability,” will be held on Tuesday, February 26th at 10:00 a.m. in room 2322 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

“As the Committee moves forward with legislation to address the food safety crisis in the United States, it is important that we understand the effect of lax regulation,” said Rep. John D. Dingell, the Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce. “I’m pleased that we will have before us the presidents and CEOs of some of the companies that have produced contaminated food in the past year, and I look forward to not only asking them why the incidents involving their products occurred, but also what our regulators were doing during these incidents.”

The Subcommittee has issued invitations to the witnesses listed below. Should witnesses refuse to testify voluntarily, the Committee may be compelled to subpoena them. Invited witnesses include:

        Panel I
Mr. William D. Marler, Managing Partner of Marler Clark, LLP, PS - CONFIRMED
Mr. Jerome Campbell, Assistant Director California Department of Pesticide Regulation - CONFIRMED
Mr. John Williams, Executive Director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance - CONFIRMED
A Representative from the Humane Society is also expected to testify on the first panel.
        Panel II
Mr. Gary M. Rodkin, CEO of ConAgra Foods, Inc.
Mr. Keith Shoemaker, President and CEO of Butterball, LLC.
Mr. Christopher D. Lischewski, President and CEO of Bumble Bee Foods, Inc.- CONFIRMED
Mr. Rick Ray, President and CEO of New Era Canning Company.- CONFIRMED
Mr. David DeLorenzo, President and CEO of Dole Food Company
Mr. Steve Mendell of Westland/Hallmark Meat Company
        Panel lll
Mr. David Eisenberg, ANRESCO Laboratories - CONFIRMED
Dr. Robert E. Brackett, PhD, Senior Vice President and Chief Science and Regulatory Affairs Officer for the Grocery Manufacturers Association - CONFIRMED

Do Your Homework

Posted by Salmonella Attorney on February 20, 2008

Had a nice chat with Jessica Fargen of the Boston Herald as I was traveling to New Orleans – Here is the interview entitled “Do Your Homework”

Here are some common sense tips to keep in mind the next time you go food shopping. They come courtesy of Wendy Heiger-Bernays, chairwoman of the Lexington Board of Health and professor at the Boston University School of Public Health.

• Check expiration dates on foods, particularly meat and dairy products.
• Wash raw chicken in cold water before cooking it. (NOT A GOOD IDEA)
• Always scrub fruits and vegetables.

Bill Marler, a Seattle attorney who writes a blog about food poisoning and food-borne illness, said where food quality is concerned, you can judge a store by its looks.

“The cleaner the operation, the less likely bacteria contamination or viral contamination can occur,” he said. “The cleanliness of a store itself is a good indicator of how a grocery store feels about food safety.”

Marler also urges energetic shoppers to go to their local health department and check out their favorite store’s latest inspection report, the same way they keep tabs on their favorite restaurants.
“You need to be somewhat discerning about where you are going to eat dinner and where you buy your produce,” he said.

Lawsuit filed against maker of botulism-tainted chili

Posted by Botulism Attorney on February 19, 2008

A lawsuit was filed today against Castleberry’s Food Co., the company that recalled tens of millions of pounds of canned meat products sold under over 80 different labels after they were identified as the source of a botulism outbreak in July, 2007. The lawsuit was filed in Federal District Court for the Northern District of Ohio on behalf of Carl Ours, a New London, Ohio resident who became ill with botulism poisoning after consuming Castleberry’s Chili Sauce in late June of 2007. Mr. Ours is represented by Marler Clark of Seattle and Murray & Murray of Sandusky, Ohio.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiff alleges that he consumed Castleberry’s Chili Sauce on or about June 28, 2007, and began suffering from symptoms of botulism, including muscle weakness, inability of swallow, and choking while eating, on June 30. Mr. Ours’ symptoms worsened and within days he suffered weakness in his arms and legs that progressed until he had difficulty walking. He sought emergency treatment several times before being taken by “life-flight” helicopter to the Cleveland Clinic, where he was diagnosed with botulism poisoning. Mr. Ours was hospitalized from July 7 to August 3, and was then transferred to a nursing home to continue his recovery. He returned home on August 24, but continues to suffer physical injury as a result of his botulism illness.

“Castleberry’s sold a product that was unsafe for human consumption and now owes a duty to its injured customers to compensate them for their injuries,” said William Marler, managing partner of Marler Clark. “It’s only right for Castleberry’s to offer restitution for Mr. Ours’ physical, emotional, and financial losses. His medical expenses and lost wages alone total over $100,000.”

Botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness that is caused by a nerve toxin produced by Clostridium botulinum. Symptoms of botulism include double vision, blurred vision, drooping eyelids, slurred speech, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, and muscle weakness. The illness can cause paralysis, respiratory failure, and death.

Marler added, “Without proper medical care, Mr. Ours and others who were part of the outbreak might not still be with us today.”

Obama - Where is the Beef?

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 19, 2008

OK, I could not help myself. Hell, no one knows where the 143 million pounds of recalled meat really is. As I posted below, I am an Obama and Clinton supporter – “Obanton?” I did get an email from one of my chief defense lawyer opponents (also an Obama supporter) noting that Obama has made a statement on the recent recall. Well, it is 6:00 AM Seattle time and I am at the airport on my way to New Orleans to sit in on the GMA Food Claims Litigation Conference - should be interesting. So, back to Obama's statement:

Senator Barack Obama released a statement on the Department of Agriculture‚s decision to recall 143 million pounds of frozen beef that came from “downed” animals. The consumption of downed cattle can pose a higher risk of contamination from E. coli, salmonella or mad cow disease. Senator Obama released the following statement:

"Senator Barack Obama released a statement on the Department of Agriculture‚s decision to recall 143 million pounds of frozen beef that came from “downed” animals. The consumption of downed cattle can pose a higher risk of contamination from E. coli, salmonella or mad cow disease.

"Senator Obama said: “Although the Department of Agriculture has now recalled the tainted beef, an estimated 37 million pounds has gone to school lunch programs, and unfortunately, officials believe that most of the meat has already been consumed by schoolchildren. This incident demonstrates yet again the inadequacy of the food recall process. Far too often, tainted food is not recalled until too late.

"When I am President, it will not be business as usual when it comes to food safety. I will provide additional resources to hire more federal food inspectors. I will also call on the Department of Agriculture to examine whether federal food safety laws need to be strengthened, in particular to provide greater protections against tainted food being used in the National School Lunch Program.

"As the parent of two young daughters, there are few issues more important to me than ensuring the safety of the food that our children consume. I commend the Humane Society of the United States for bringing this important issue to the public attention and believe that the mistreatment of downed cows is unacceptable and poses a serious threat to public health.”

As the Fanatic Cook points out in a comment I received – “Senator Clinton is a cosponsor of the 2007 Safe Food Act. Senators Obama and McCain are not. (That's not saying they wouldn't be if they were briefed on it.) I'm not making an endorsement here! I'm only saying that I've been following Senate and House versions of the 2007 Safe Food Act, a bill that would among many things increase number of inspectors, increase frequency for inspections, provide funding for same, and consolidate food safety responsibilities among organizations (FDA, USDA, etc.), and Clinton, along with Schumer (NY), Casey (PA), and Durbin (IL), are the sponsors of the bill in the Senate."

So, Obama, time to put some “meat on the bone.” And, I am still available for “Food Safety Czar.”

Clinton Unveils Food Safety Plan - Have I Missed Obama's?

Posted by Food Poisoning Lawyer on February 19, 2008

Like most Democrats who could be happy (I donated to both) with either Obama (my wife is a delegate) or Clinton, I must admit after reading this Clinton Press Release last night, I would like to hear from the Obama camp.

Hillary Clinton Unveils Food Safety Plan

By: Hillary Clinton for President

Following the largest beef recall in our nation's history, Hillary Clinton highlighted a series of food safety proposals she would pursue as President. This recall is not an isolated case - it is yet another troubling reminder that our food supply is at risk. Each year, tens of millions of Americans contract food-borne illnesses every year; hundreds of thousands are hospitalized; and thousands die. And the risks are only growing. Last year alone, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversaw 21 recalls related to E. coli in meat, compared with just eight in 2006. One of those recalls involved more than 20 million pounds of ground beef that caused nearly 100 illnesses in the United States and Canada. In addition, yesterday's recall by Hallmark/Westland is the second-largest supplier to the U.S. School Lunch program and a substantial supplier to other federal food and nutrition initiatives.

Hillary believes that American families should not have to worry about the safety of food on their dinner tables or in their children's school lunches. That is why she has proposed common-sense - and long-overdue - food safety reforms, building on her work in the Senate. As President, she will:

Immediately conduct a thorough audit of our nation's food safety systems to locate weaknesses and gaps. The current recall raises a number of questions, including how USDA failed to detect violations at the Hallmark/Westland plant and what steps USDA will take to ensure that all of the meat is removed from grocery stores and school cafeterias. Hillary will seek a report with recommendations on immediate and long-term reforms.

Increase USDA food safety funding by more than 50% so that our inspectors have the resources and staffing they need to do their jobs. USDA conceded that the cattle involved in this recall "did not receive complete and proper inspection." This year, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service will have a budget of $930 million. Much of that money goes to fund 7,800 inspectors responsible for inspecting 6,200 slaughterhouses and food processors across the nation. Hillary will move over time to increase that budget to $1.5 billion and to bolster the inspection force.

Move toward a single Food Safety Administration responsible for all food products, with strong authorities to protect consumers. Hillary will work to centralize our nation's food safety efforts in one agency, so that multiple bodies are not policing imports and setting separate standards. Right now, 15 agencies administer more than 30 laws related to food safety. The result is overlap, gaps, and waste. At times, our system is downright bizarre. For example, a ham and cheese sandwich on one slice of bread is the responsibility of the USDA. But a ham and cheese sandwich on two slices of bread is the responsibility of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Hillary believes that the current regulatory system is broken and that we can only meet the challenges we face through a single agency that uses a uniform system of tracing and inspection to ensure the highest standards of safety and quality from food's origin to it consumption.

Give our safety agencies mandatory recall authority and direct them to create a national tracing system so we can determine the origin of tainted food. Hillary will authorize the FDA and USDA to mandate recalls of tainted products. Right now, the FDA and USDA lack mandatory recall authority. And the Government Accountability Office has found that current food recall systems have additional severe flaws: (1) FDA and USDA are often unaware of how promptly and completely companies carry out recalls; (2) FDA and USDA do not promptly confirm that recalls have made it all the way down the distribution chain; and (3) public notification procedures are often ineffective. Hillary will direct the new food safety agency to address these shortcomings. She will also direct the new food safety agency to establish an integrated national traceback system to help regulators trace food products and ingredients from their point of sale back to their origin. At present, there are gaps in our ability to determine the source of unsafe food and animal feed, which hinders efforts to control outbreaks and curb them before they spread. We must ensure that we have adequate tracking and monitoring mechanisms in place to ensure the health of our livestock, our farmers and our consumers nationwide.

Find, prosecute, and punish food production facilities that abuse animals and allow unsafe food to enter our food supply. Hillary will strengthen safety rules and increase civil and criminal penalties for violations of federal food safety regulations. She will direct federal prosecutors to aggressively crack down on offending companies. And she will also make it illegal for companies to violate recall requirements, and impose severe civil and criminal penalties for violations.

Ban the slaughter of downed animals. Part of ensuring that we have a safe food supply is making sure sick and injured animals are humanely euthanized, not slaughtered and put into the food supply. Twelve of the 15 cases of mad cow disease in North America were linked to downed animals. Downed animals are also three times more likely to carry E. coli, and according to one analysis presented at the American Meat Institute conference, 14% of downed cows carried salmonella. After the mad cow disease scare in 2003, the USDA put in place a temporary ban of the slaughter of downer animals, but a 2006 investigation by the USDA Inspector General revealed that the ban has not been well enforced and that more than two dozen downed animals were allowed into the food supply over a nine-month period. Americans need to have confidence in our meat suppliers, and the current temporary ban must be made permanent. As President, Hillary will impose and strictly enforce a permanent ban on the inhumane practice of slaughtering downed animals and putting them in the food supply.

I think she has been reading my blog perhaps? Also, I still might be available for "Food Safety Czar" - if anyone asks.

CDC Long-term Study of Nation's School Children and Congressional Hearings on Safety of United States Beef Supply Needed

Posted by Bill Marler on February 17, 2008

The largest recall of beef in U.S. history – over 143 million pounds - and the solid evidence that USDA has failed to enforce its own ban against downer cattle being used in the nation’s school lunch program, demand immediate action by Congress says food safety attorney William D. Marler. As I said to USA Today:

The huge recall will put the safety of the U.S. beef supply "front and center" in Congress, said William Marler, a prominent food-safety lawyer.

Marler says Congress should call hearings on the safety of the beef supply in the United States and provide funds to the Centers on Disease Control to study children for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) who consumed the meat supplied to the National School Lunch Program.

“The link between cattle that are too sick or injured to stand or walk, and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) has been clearly established.” Marler said. “We were promised that the procurement specifications eliminated “downer” cattle from the National School Lunch Program and the USDA fully banned “downer “cattle from the human food chain in 2003.”

“In light of the Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Company, which was caught on film processing “downer” cattle, in violation of U.S. law, we now know that USDA ban was a lie,” added Marler. “Since BSE typically will not show symptoms for years, we need the CDC to track school children who might have been exposed.”

“And let’s not forget the risk of E. coli O157:H7. Since April of 2007 until this morning, another 30,000,000 pounds of red meat, mostly hamburger, had been recalled. E. coli illnesses once on a downturn have spiked. Kids are getting sick; seriously sick again,” said Marler. According to a USDA study published in August 2004 “downer” cows had three times more E. coli O157:H7 than other cows.

“One would think that with hundreds of Americans poisoned that Congress would ask one simple question – “What is going on?” Congress needs to act now. It is time for Congress to accept a leadership role and call hearings, not only to explore the reasons for the past months’ E. coli outbreaks, but also to help prevent the next one. Congress needs to fulfill its role of providing oversight to the other branches of government, especially investigative oversight,” added Marler.

Hallmark and Westland Meat Packing Company of Chino, California is recalling 143,383,823 pounds of raw and frozen beef products

Posted by Food Poisoning Lawyer on February 17, 2008

The problems at Westland and Hallmark began with abusing cattle, moved into a ban of its product from the market, then on to criminal violations. We now need to get this front and center before a congressional Investigation.

The Largest Recall in United States History occurred Sunday.

Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Company of Chino, California establishment is recalling approximately 143,383,823 pounds of raw and frozen beef products that FSIS has determined to be unfit for human food because the cattle did not receive complete and proper inspection. According to an FSIS press release, through evidence obtained by FSIS, the establishment did not consistently contact the FSIS public health veterinarian in situations in which cattle became non-ambulatory after passing ante-mortem inspection, which is not compliant with FSIS regulations. Such circumstances require that an FSIS public health veterinarian reassess the non-ambulatory cattle which are either condemned and prohibited from the food supply, or tagged as suspect. Suspect cattle receive a more thorough inspection after slaughter than is customary. Full Release.

In July 2007, FSIS issued a final rule “Prohibition of the Use of Specified Risk Materials for Human Food and Requirements for the Disposition of Non-Ambulatory Disabled Cattle.” This rule requires that a case by case disposition must be made by an FSIS Public Health Veterinarian for every animal that becomes non-ambulatory disabled (“downer”) after passing ante-mortem inspection.

All products subject to recall bear the establishment number “EST. 336” inside the USDA mark of inspection. The products were produced on various dates from Feb. 1, 2006 to Feb. 2, 2008. Companies are urged to check their inventories and hold the products until the recalling firm makes arrangements for final disposition of the products. Full FSIS Website.

See Labels. The following products are subject to recall:

E. Coli O157:H7 in Beef Will Be Investigated by California Senate Committee and Senator Dean Florez

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 17, 2008

Due to the 2007 recall of over 30,000,000 pounds of hamburger – with hundreds sickened – and the recent recall of meat from the downer cow problem, the Senate Select Committee on Food-borne Illness will meet Monday, February 25, at 10:00 a.m. in Room 3191 of the California State Capitol to see what can be done to address these serious food safety issues. I have been asked to attend and testify. As Senator Florez in part wrote today in the California Progressive Report:

As thousands of pounds of frozen ground beef sit “on hold” in school cafeterias across the nation while the USDA determines whether or not it is safe for our children to eat, I have scheduled a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on Food-borne Illness into the events that got us into this situation, as well as other disturbing issues brought to light by the investigation. The USDA is investigating because video footage taken by individuals from the Humane Society shows two workers at Chino-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Company essentially torturing several sick cows to keep them on their feet so they will be deemed eligible for slaughter. There are serious health considerations behind the ban on slaughtering such “downer cattle” for human consumption, such as E. coli or even mad cow disease, which the animals’ staggering may indicate. The thought that workers for a company which provides meat through the USDA to school districts and nutrition programs for the poor and elderly would go to such lengths to sneak a sick cow into the food chain, at great risk to the public health, is a frightening development for which the public deserves answers.

See you in Sacramento on the 25th. I am then off to Washington D.C. to testify on Tuesday, February 26 in front of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on Contaminated Food: Private Sector Accountability. The hearing is at 10:00 a.m. in room 2322 Rayburn House Office Building.

Listeria Victims and Their Families are the Real Heroes in the Whittier Farms Investigation

Posted by Listeria Attorney on February 17, 2008

Linda Bock TELEGRAM & GAZETTE has been following this tragedy since the beginning, and her recent story – “CSI: Listeria - State health lab used DNA ‘fingerprints’ to find listeria source” – continues our fascination with the crime scene investigation of “the recent Listeria outbreak linked to three deaths and one miscarriage.”

However, her story misses the point a bit. Although she correctly points out that the outbreak “could have gone on indefinitely without the “detectives” at the state’s public health laboratory, who tracked down, fingerprinted, identified and photographed the dangerous strain of bacteria, and then posted the prints in a national computer database to safeguard others,” the real heroes in this and most outbreaks are the victims and their families who both are the “canaries in the coal mine” and assist in the investigation. As Ms. Brock reports:

Health officials said their first evidence of an outbreak also wound up breaking the case. That happened in November when the family of an elderly man who had fallen ill told hospital officials he may have consumed unpasteurized apple cider purchased at a farm stand in Norfolk County. Hospital staff advised the family to bring the cider to local health officials. The family brought in both the cider and a bottle of coffee-flavored milk purchased at the same stand. The local health agent sent the samples on to the state lab.

Next time, do not forget the victims.

I also was stuck by the quote of Dr. Alfred DeMaria Jr., about the safety of pasteurized milk:

It’s the first time pasteurized milk has been linked to a Listeria outbreak since ’83 in Massachusetts. What that implies is that pasteurized milk is extraordinarily safe. People should have confidence in pasteurized milk.

Oh really? Perhaps not so fast. Pasteurized milk has been the source of a number of significant outbreaks over the last twenty-five years. However, in every one of the outbreaks, the contamination occurred because of a failure in the pasteurization process (heat too low) or in contamination post-pasteurization (contamination at bottling or additives). So, raw milk folks, do not get too excited - pasteurization works, or certainly should.

OK, I have now sued three raw milk dairies in the last three years for poisoning their customers with E. coli O157:H7. I have been attacked via email or by bloggers as being anti-small farmer or worse, a tool of “Big Dairy,” despite fifteen years of fighting against every large food company in the United Sates on behalf of victims of food poisoning.

As a father, lawyer and food-safety activist, I have come to be increasingly uneasy about this raw milk issue. I have been giving this plenty of thought: On the one hand, yes, individuals should have the right to produce and consume raw milk. On the other hand, suppose one of your or my daughters had been one of those recent children sickened by raw milk - a product that is being sold as healthful – even with claims that it kills “bad” bacteria.

Because I don’t believe in the safety of our nation’s meat supply, my children do not eat hamburger at home. Their friends’ parents and their teachers know that they don’t eat hamburger at anyone else’s homes, at birthday parties, and in the school cafeteria. But, raw milk is not like hamburger, or is it? That is exactly what I have been thinking these past few months as I witness more and more children being poisoned by a product that is touted as good for you and safe.

The environment in which the cows graze (on grass or on grain) contains microorganisms that can find their way into the cows gut or onto hair or udder, so whether you are milking or killing the cow and turning it into hamburger, the risk of bacterial contamination is there.

I do not have all the answers. In fact, I do not have many of them. That’s why I want you and I to be looking at these things together. During the next months, we will be taking up in this blog issues associated with raw milk. We have to get back to that old-fashioned entity of conscience – yours, mine and societies in general.

It Is Easier To Catch The Small Fry

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 16, 2008

Meet Michael A. Ramos, San Bernardino County District Attorney. He has just filed criminal charges in the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company's mistreatment of downer cows.

We are not, at least at this point, going to see Westland/Hallmark President Steve Mendell being taken away in handcuffs. No, neither Mendell nor any other Westland/Hallmark corporate officials being "frog-marched" passed the media.

No, but according to the Los Angeles Times "Daniel Ugarte Navarro of Pomona faces up to eight years and eight months in prison if convicted of five felony counts of animal cruelty and three misdemeanor counts of illegal movement of a non-ambulatory animal. Navarro, who was a head pen manager at Hallmark Meat Packing, was fired last month after the release of the video by the Humane Society of the United States.

A pen manager? The LA Times also reports "authorities today also filed three misdemeanor counts against 32-year-old Luis Sanchez of Chino, who worked directly under Navarro and was also fired last month. Sanchez faces up to three years in prison if convicted. Here is a great quote from the LA Times:

Neither Navarro nor Sanchez appeared at their arraignments Friday afternoon at a Chino courthouse. Warrants were issued for their arrest.

Reached at his home Friday, Sanchez, a father of two, said he regretted his actions and that he was only following orders. "I did it because they ordered me to. I obeyed them; if not, I lost my job," Sanchez said in Spanish. "I knew it was illegal but they obliged me to do it." Sanchez said he is an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and that he worked at Hallmark for six years before he was fired last month. He is not represented by an attorney.

Perhaps we should hire one for them. We guess Sanchez was trying to work his way up to "pen manager." He was probably the other guy fired immediately by Westland/Hallmark after the Humane Society went public with its videotape.

"Downer" cows, which are many more times more likely to spread Mad Cow disease, were being routinely mistreated at the Westland/Hallmark Chino slaughterhouse. Are we to believe that responsibility for these practices stop with a "pen manager" and his trusty companion?

Schools nationwide have been forced to pull beef from their menus and leave it stacked in their freezers until this mess is cleaned up. On one hand, we have to give D.A. Ramos credit for filing at least some criminal charges in this matter. However, one has to wonder where is the U.S. Justice Department?

Or how about Homeland Security? What's more important than protecting the security of the food supply going into every school lunch program in the country. There really are better ways to humanely deal with sick and injured cows.

Maybe if the feds would put their considerable resources to work they could find away to charge someone higher up than a "pen manager." D.A. Ramos says "We want to send the message that this kind of behavior will not be tolerated."

That message Mr. Ramos would be better sent by charging those in charge.

Castleberry Might Be Sold Due To Botulism Recall

Posted by Botulism Attorney on February 16, 2008

Tim Rausch wrote this morning that Castleberry's Food Company might be sold – “Brand might be sold”

The Canadian investment fund that owns Castleberry's Food Co. said it is considering selling the canned meat company, whose 400-employee Augusta plant was linked to a botulism scare last year. Toronto-based Connors Bros. Income Fund has started a "strategic" review of its meat product brands, which includes Castleberry's and Sweet Sue. The fund's Bumble Bee and Clover Leaf seafood brands are not part of the review.

According to the CDC, as of August 24, 2007, eight cases of botulism have been reported from Indiana (2 cases), Texas (3 cases), and Ohio (3 cases). The illness onset dates range from June 29 to August 7, 2007. All eight persons were reported to have consumed hot dog chili sauce made by Castleberry's Food Company. The two cases in Indiana occurred in two persons who shared a meal that included Castleberry's hot dog chili sauce the day before illness onset. Botulinum toxin was identified in both patients' sera and leftovers containing hot dog chili sauce collected from the patients' refrigerator. The three cases in Texas occurred in two siblings and their mother, who shared a meal containing Castleberry's hot dog chili sauce the day before the siblings became ill. The three Ohio cases occurred in unrelated persons who consumed Castleberry's hot dog chili sauce in the week before illness onset. One person reported consuming the chili sauce in early August, after the product was recalled. Botulinum toxin was identified in leftover chili sauce collected from this patient's refrigerator.

We are investigating two illnesses likely linked to the Castleberry outbreak. One of the cases is from Hawaii and the other is one of the counted cases from Ohio.

Hawaii Salmonella Ahi Toll Now 34 - Additional Illness in California and Colorado

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on February 16, 2008

The Honolulu Advertiser reported this morning that the Hawaii State Department of Health says a new case of salmonella poisoning has been confirmed on Oahu, bringing to 34 the number of such infections since October. The latest case involves someone who reported eating ahi poke bought at a local market, the department said in a news release yesterday. Previous investigations have identified raw imported frozen ahi used in ahi poke as a source of illness in the other cases since October. Additional cases of fish-related illnesses have been reported in Colorado and California.

Salmonella is one of the most common enteric (intestinal) infections in the United States. Salmonellosis (the disease caused by Salmonella) is the second most common foodborne illness after Campylobacter infection. It is estimated that 1.4 million cases of salmonellosis occur each year in the U.S.; 95% of those cases are foodborne-related. Approximately 220 of each 1000 cases result in hospitalization and eight of every 1000 cases result in death. About 500 to 1,000 or 31% of all food-related deaths are caused by Salmonella infections each year. Salmonellosis is more common in the warmer months of the year.

Seattle Spring Food Safety Seminar - April 11-12, 2008

Posted by Bill Marler on February 15, 2008

I must admit this Seminar is coming together nicely. Registrations are pouring in. Click below and download the Brochure and Registration Form.

Trader Joe's = Ethnocentric

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 14, 2008

I was reading a story tonight about how a “US store chain cuts sales of food from China” and was a bit shocked that Trader Joe’s really intends to eliminate "all single ingredient food items (whatever that means) sourced from Mainland China are scheduled to be out of our stores by April 1.” Apparently, Trader Joe’s is basing this move on customer complaint stemming from “a series of consumer scares last year involving harmful products from major exporter China, including seafood, cat food, medicines and toys, led to mass product recalls and the tightening of US safety regulations (NO, it did not).”

Here is an interesting fact. In fifteen years of food litigation, guess how many cases of human food poisoning I have seen out of China – zero (OK, they have clearly killed some dogs and cats in the US, and recently sicked a bunch of people in Japan). Yes, Chinese products have been in the news as of late, but the reality it that US corporations do a great job of poisoning us without help from China or anywhere else for that matter. Trader Joe’s, you should be ashamed for focusing on a problem from China that really does not exist. Joe, take a walk around your store and look at all of your products that you have sold that have caused illness over the last few years – how many have come from outside the US?

Veggie Booty Salmonella Final Report - New York Department of Health

Posted by Salmonella Attorney on February 12, 2008

Instead of looking out my window today, I spent much of it reviewing the Final Veggie Booty Salmonella Report by the New York Department of Health and all the attached documents. One thing caught my attention – the number of Salmonella strains found in this outbreak. Strains included:

Salmonella Wandsworth, Salmonella Typhimurium, Salmonella Mbandaka, Salmonella sp., Salmonella Kentucky, Salmonella Haifa and Salmonella Saint Paul

Also found was Enterobacter sakazakii. Enterobacter sakazakii is a gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium within the family Enterobacteriaceae. The organism was called "yellow-pigmented Enterobacter cloacae" until 1980 when it was renamed Enterobacter sakazakii. The majority of cases of infection reported in the peer-reviewed literature have described neonates with sepsis, meningitis, or necrotizing enterocolitis as a consequence of the infection. The Report in part reads:

In May 2007, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) begun a multi-state investigation in response to an increase in laboratory reports, first posted on the PulseNet WebBoard on April 2, 2007, of Salmonella Wandsworth. Salmonella Wandsworth is a very rare serotype that was never before implicated in a U.S. outbreak. As of September 6, 2007, there were 69 reported cases of Salmonella Wandsworth in 23 states and 14 cases of Salmonella Typhimurium in six states who became ill after consuming Veggie Booty, a puffed vegetable snack food with a raw, dried vegetable coating.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conducted food and environmental sampling at the factories used to make the season Veggie Booty snack products. Veggie Booty is coated with a raw spice/seasoning that includes eight different vegetable ingredients blended together. Samples from the seasoning tested by the FDA were reported positive for the outbreak strains of Salmonella Wandsworth and Salmonella Typhimurium. The FDA also found isolates in the seasonings positive for Salmonella Mbandaka. The suspected Salmonella Mbandaka isolate was a brand new pattern.

A total of 61 bags were tested in twelve states. Salmonella sp. was isolated from thirteen bags of Veggie Booty. Eleven of the thirteen bags were positive for the outbreak strain of Salmonella Wandsworth and one bag was positive for Salmonella Typhimurium and Enterobacter sakazakii. One bag tested positive for Salmonella Kentucky. CDC reported Salmonella Haifa and Salmonella Saint Paul were isolated from bags of Veggie Booty.

The Full Report can be found here.

J & B Meats - Listeria Bratwurst Anyone?

Posted by Listeria Attorney on February 10, 2008

Minnesota State officials say consumers should avoid consuming smoked pork and beef bratwurst made by J&B Meats, of Barnesville, because it may be contaminated with Listeria bacteria. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture says there are no reports of illnesses from the product. The contamination was found through routine testing. J&B Meats sold the bratwurst at its retail store in Barnesville, about 20 miles southeast of Moorhead. The sausages are often sold frozen. The affected bratwurst bears the lot number PBB30306, and Minnesota State Establishment Number 1198. Consumers who have any are asked to return it to the store.

USDA Extends Meat Ban at Westland Meat

Posted by Food Poisoning Lawyer on February 10, 2008

USDA officials extended a ban on use of meat from a Chino slaughterhouse shut down last week for mistreating cattle. It also said the Westland plant had been cited in 2005 for using electric prods on animals. This was the same year that Westland Meat Company was awarded “The Supplier of the Year for 2004-2005 for the National School Lunch Program.”

Shocking?

According to AP reports, USDA officials insisted Friday that investigations have found no evidence that meat from disabled animals has entered the food supply despite video to the contrary. Humane Society President and Chief Executive Wayne Pacelle disputed that claim by USDA.

"There's no ambiguity in our mind that this plant was accepting downers, abusing downers and slaughtering downers."

Why is this all important? Federal regulations call for keeping downer cows out of the food supply because they pose a higher risk of E. coli, salmonella contamination, or mad cow disease since they typically wallow in feces and their immune systems are often weak. Yummy!

Erie County New York Vaccination Clinics for Hepatitis A Victims of Wegmans

Posted by Hepatitis A Attorney on February 09, 2008

Newsday reports that the Erie County Health Department scheduled free vaccination clinics Saturday and Sunday after a produce handler at a suburban Buffalo grocery store was diagnosed with Hepatitis A. The clinics are for those who bought unsealed produce at Wegmans on Sheridan Drive in Williamsville since January 7 and who have eaten it raw within the past two weeks, according to health officials.

Wegmans removed potentially affected produce and sanitized the area. The company said it would issue refunds to customers who believe they bought affected produce, but asked they dispose of it at home and not bring it back.

Hepatitis A is one of five human hepatitis viruses (hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E) that primarily infect the liver and cause illness. An estimated 80,000 cases occur each year in the U.S., although much higher estimates have been proposed based on mathematical modeling of the past incidence of infection. Each year, an estimated 100 persons die as a result of acute liver failure in the U.S. due to Hepatitis A, but the rate of infection has dramatically decreased since the Hepatitis A vaccine was licensed and became available in the U.S. in 1995. We have represented thousands of people impacted by Hepatitis A from the following restaurants: Carl's Jr., Chi-Chi's, D'Angelo's, Friendly's, Maple Lawn Dairy, McDonald's, Quizno's, Silver Grill Location Catering, Subway and Taco Bell.

Botulism Seems to be a Weekly Occurence

Posted by Botulism Lawyer on February 09, 2008

Health officials again announced that last month's recall of canned beans in 6 to 7 pound institutional-sized cans over botulism concerns has been expanded to include a variety of other vegetables in similar-sized cans. The expanded recall includes asparagus, peas and other vegetables canned by the Michigan-based New Era Canning Company. The vegetables are sold under a variety of brand names, including Classic Sysco, Code, Frosty Acres Restaurant's Pride Preferred, GFS, Kitchen Essentials, Monarch Heritage, Necco, New Era, Nugget and Reliance Sysco. A full list of the recalled products with names and lot codes can be found at the FDA website.

Botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. Clostridium botulinum is the name of a group of bacteria commonly found in soil. It is an anaerobic, gram-positive, spore-forming rod that produces a potent neurotoxin. These rod-shaped organisms grow best in low oxygen conditions. The bacteria form spores, which allow them to survive in a dormant state until exposed to conditions that can support their growth. The organism and its spores are widely distributed in nature. They occur in both cultivated and forest soils, bottom sediments of streams, lakes, and coastal waters, and in the intestinal tracts of fish and mammals, and in the gills and viscera of crabs and other shellfish.

A Silver Bullet for E. coli?

Posted by E. coli Attorney on February 09, 2008

According to Bioniche and press reports, the USDA has agreed to grant a conditional license to Bioniche for its E. coli O157:H7 Cattle Vaccine.

Is this the “silver bullet” to solve the recent uptick in E. coli recalls and human illnesses? I have had the opportunity to meet with Bioniche scientists and executives over the years and am pleased to see a potential weapon against these deadly bacteria. The Bioniche vaccine prevents the E. coli O157:H7 bacteria from attaching to the intestines of vaccinated cattle, thereby reducing their reproduction within the animal, and reducing the amount of bacteria that can be released through cattle manure in the environment.

I am looking forward to the continued study of this promising vaccine. Clearly we need it. I found this great chart on the Ethicurian about the increases in recalls:

In the last 15 years here are a few of the defendants we have sued on behalf of E. coli victims:

AFG, AgVenture Farms, Bauer Meats, BJ's Wholesale Club, Byerly's, Cargill, Carneco, China Buffet, ConAgra, Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo, Cub Foods, Dole, Emmpak, Excel, Finley School District, Fresno Meat Market, Gold Coast Produce, Golden Corral, Habaneros, Interstate Meats, Jack in the Box, Karl Ehmer, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Kids Korner Day Care, King Garden, Lane County Fair, Lunds, Odwalla, Natural Selections, Olive Garden, Organic Pastures, Peninsula Village, Pat & Oscar's, PM Beef Holdings, Robeson School District, Sam's Club, Sizzler, Spokane Produce, Sodexho, Supervalu, Taco Bell, Taco John's, Topps, United Food Group (UFG) and Wendy's

I guess they all could have used a bullet or two?

Families sue raw milk producer, Organic Pastures, over E. coli outbreak

Posted by E. coli Lawyer on February 08, 2008

The Associated Press reports that the families of two children sickened by the E. coli bacteria are suing a Fresno dairy. The lawsuits filed Thursday in Fresno County Superior Court accuse Organic Pastures Dairy Co. of shipping raw milk tainted with the bacteria to stores in September 2006. That's when at least five children fell ill after consuming the dairy's products. Testing at Organic Pastures did not detect the strain of E. coli that sickened some of the children, but a government report last February said the dairy was likely responsible. Organic Pastures has also had problems with listeria according to the FDA and it is rumored to be under investigation by the State of California for a campylobacter problem as well.

Eleven-year-old Lauren Herzog (complaint) and 9-year-old Chris Martin (complaint) both consumed raw milk produced by Organic Pastures in early September of 2006. Lauren became ill with symptoms of E. coli infection on September 6. Her illness subsequently developed into HUS, a life-threatening complication of E. coli infection that can cause kidney failure and central nervous system impairment, and she was hospitalized on September 8. Lauren suffered acute renal failure and required approximately two weeks of daily kidney dialysis. She remained hospitalized until October 18, 2006, when she was discharged with over $250,000 in medical bills.

Chris became ill with symptoms of E. coli infection on September 5, 2006 and he was hospitalized on September 7. Like Lauren, Chris suffered HUS. His condition worsened and he was transported by helicopter to a Children’s hospital and was placed in pediatric intensive care. Chris’ kidneys failed and he required weeks of daily dialysis, as well as multiple blood transfusions. He was placed on a ventilator as a result of impending congestive heart failure, and remained on the ventilator for five days, was briefly taken off the ventilator, and later returned for several more days. Chris suffered a number of seizures as a result of his HUS. He also developed high blood pressure and pancreatitis. Chris was discharged from the hospital on November 2, 2006, nearly two months after he was admitted, with over $450,000 in medical bills.

Mark McAfee, the founder of Organic Pastures Dairy Company was quoted in the Rutger’s Daily Targum yesterday in an article entitled – “Dairy farmers get 'raw' deal:”

"It is a tragedy that the idea that germs make you sick took off, and to this day, it's all about killing bacteria and there is little cause to promote good bacteria," McAfee said. "We are symbiotically living with bacteria. We are literally bacterio-sapiens."
He noted that the human environment and the environment in which milk is grown that often causes the presence of sickness causing pathogens. His dairy company has open, grassy fields where dairy cows can roam freely and be bathed in sunlight, all while retaining their health.

"Raw milk has the things we crave," McAfee said, adding that it is enzyme rich and has a diversity of beneficial bacteria, as well as good raw saturated animal fats from grass grazing cows.

"Two hundred and forty seven people a day are being killed by antibiotic resistant superbugs," McAfee said. "That's like a jumbo jet crashing daily. Nobody wants to prevent disease, because disease makes money. You are saturated everyday by television advertisements that tell you if you have a problem, see a doctor because we have a cure. In western medicine, you turn off the symptoms while the underlying disease is killing you."

He reinforced his belief of raw milk and its ability to build the immune system, which can help fight off and prevent disease.

"You have a living immune system in raw milk, yet we can't speak of this because we are undoing what is settled science," he said. "Mother nature got it right, and it's been right for a long time."

Here is a bit of video on Mark, "the raw milk ninja."

It is good to see my friends at The Complete Patient are paying attention – see David’s last two posts – 1 and 2. I can not wait to get some input from Dr. Mercola, the Weston Price Foundation and Ron Paul.

Salmonella Outbreak Sickens 33 Leading to Recall of Ahi in Hawaii

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on February 08, 2008

The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported again on the ongoing story last week of about 33 illness of Salmonella Paratyphi B tied to the consumption of yellow fin Tuna Ahi. Now Choyce Products announced that it has voluntarily recalled 11,000 pounds of previously frozen yellow fin tuna that tested positive for salmonella. About 5,000 pounds of the contaminated Ahi was sold to some five businesses, but it is not clear how much was recovered or if any had already been sold to consumers.

The Health Department believes the illnesses are related to previously frozen ahi, which was imported to Hawaii and eaten raw.

Salmonella Paratyphi B is host-specialized, for it grows well and causes disease only in humans, whereas most strains of Salmonella can grow in the gut of almost all animals, both domesticated and wild. Humans usually acquire Salmonella Paratyphi B by the ingestion of water or of food that has been contaminated through fecal contact with humans. Most isolates of Salmonella belong to the species S. enterica, which is further subdivided into many serovars based on antigens on their surface; one of these serovars is Paratyphi B. Paratyphi B is quite diverse and human infection is sometimes not associated with human to human system infection but rather associated with foodborne infection (Prager et al, 2003).

Hawaii would be a good trip to take this time of year.

Who's Minding the Store? - The Current State of Food Safety and How It Can Be Improved - Friday & Saturday, April 11 & 12, 2008

Posted by Food Poisoning Lawyer on February 05, 2008

"Seminar in Seattle" - Registration Below. Few subjects draw more immediate attention or concern than the safety of the food we eat. Recent years have included a plethora of food warnings and recalls, raising new questions about the quality and integrity of our existing system for assuring food safety. Seattle was the epicenter of the Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak that sickened 600 and killed four 15 years ago. In addition to explaining how our present system works, this program is intended to discuss how changing consumer preferences are affecting the development and distribution of food, examine whether Federal, state and industry oversight roles are changing, and discuss how the regulatory and judicial processes can be most efficiently balanced. Participants include international, national and local representatives of government, the food industry, consumer organizations and scientists.

FRIDAY, April 11th

8:30-9:15 AM                 Opening Remarks: Dean Kellye Testy

9:15-10:45 AM               Defining the Problem: How the concerns about food safety are viewed by physicians, disease experts, state regulators, and consumers.

Barb Kowalcyk
Carlota Medus
Richard Seigler
Tom Billy
Sandra McCurdy

11:00-12:30 PM             How the Regulation of Food Safety Works: The roles and responsibilities as seen by Federal and State regulators, industry and consumers.

Bob Brackett
Mansour Samadapour
Christine Bruhn
David Goldman
Bala Swaminathan

12:30-1:45 PM               Lunch Speaker: Governor Christine Gregoire

1:45-3:15 PM                 Zones of Responsibility: Grower/Producer; Seller; Government; Consumer.

John Munsell
Craig Wilson
Scott Rickman
Caroline Smith DeWaal
Andy Benson
Devon Zagory

3:30-5:00 PM                 Roles of the Civil/Criminal Justice Systems: Perspectives of plaintiffs, respondents, and prosecutors.

Sarah Brew
Neal Fortin
Al Maxwell
Denis Stearns
Brad Sullivan

6:30-8:30 PM                 Dinner Speaker: Richard Raymond

SATURDAY, April 12th

8:30 -9:00 AM                Opening Speaker: Patricia Griffin

9:00-10:30 AM               How is Food Protected Overseas? International Perspectives on Food Safety.

Chris Griffith
Deon Mahoney
Canice Nolan
Jørgen Schlundt
Ge Zhirong

10:45-12:15 PM             Role of the Media in Public Health and Food Safety: The contributions of media and science writers to Food Safety.

Phil Brasher
Steve Hedges
Doug Powell
James E. Prevor
Andy Martin

12:15-1:30 PM               Closing Remarks: John Kobayashi

Do not miss this. For more information and to register or PDF (Titles for all speakers, who frankly do not need them, to be added).

Enterobacter sakazakii: Infections Associated with Powdered Infant Formula

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 05, 2008

Enterobacter sakazakii is a gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium within the family Enterobacteriaceae. The organism was called "yellow-pigmented Enterobacter cloacae" until 1980 when it was renamed Enterobacter sakazakii. The majority of cases of infection reported in the peer-reviewed literature have described neonates with sepsis, meningitis, or necrotizing enterocolitis as a consequence of the infection. (1)

E. sakazakii is a rare cause of bloodstream and central nervous system infections. The organism has also been associated with necrotizing enterocolitis; however, it has not been firmly established as a causative agent. Reported outcomes are often severe: seizures; brain abscess; hydrocephalus; developmental delay; and death in as many as 40%–80% of cases. Premature infants are thought to be at greater risk than more mature infants, other children, or adults, and outbreaks of disease have occurred in hospital units for newborns. (2)

E. sakazakii was first implicated in a case of neonatal meningitis in 1958, and since then there have been around 70 reported cases of E. sakazakii infection. However, it is likely that E. sakazakii is significantly under-reported in all countries. Although E. sakazakii can cause illness in all age groups, infants are believed to be at greatest risk of infection. (3)

E. Coli Lawyer Is Busier Than Ever

Posted by E. coli Attorney on February 04, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A girl fell into a 40-day coma after eating a bad Jack in the Box hamburger. Fifteen years later, she is still suffering ill effects. That doesn't bode well for a toddler who spent six weeks in the hospital in 2006 after eating E. coli-tainted spinach from California.

But both have lawyer William Marler in their corner — and that's no small consolation.

The Seattle-based Marler is the undisputed king of food poisoning litigation. He has made good money from bad food, ringing up more than $300 million in settlements for his clients in the rapidly growing legal field of food safety.

"There is a sense of complacency in the meat industry that believes, `Hey, we solved that problem and we don't have to watch it so much,'" says Marler, whose career has proved otherwise.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that food poisoning each year afflicts some 76 million Americans; 300,000 require hospitalization and 5,000 die.

Many victims end up hiring Marler, who took his first food poisoning case in 1993, during the Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak in the Pacific Northwest that sickened hundreds and killed four children.

"Bill was certainly at the right place at the right time entering the field of food safety litigation," says Caroline Smith DeWaal, who is in charge of food safety at the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington. "I see him in kind of a private attorney general role."

Marler, 50, operates three dozen Web sites dedicated to food-borne illnesses. He is a tireless blogger on all things food safety and appears in front of federal and state lawmakers and regulatory boards. The license plate on his wife's Volkswagen reads ECOLI.

In all these cases, Marler has gone to trial just once, winning a $4.6 million verdict against a Washington state school district where 11 children got E. coli poisoning in the cafeteria.

Instead, he adroitly uses his sympathetic clients — and the media — to shame food producers into settling.

"I don't apologize for that," he says. "The publicity helps generate change."

The past year has been a busy one for Marler's six-lawyer firm, which has about 1,000 active cases in all 50 states. The clients typically pay their lawyers 25 to 35 percent of their settlements.

The targets of Marler's lawsuits include the Topps Meat Co., which recalled 21.7 million pounds of its hamburger patties in September — the second-biggest U.S. beef recall ever — then went out of business. When Cargill Inc. recalled 840,000 pounds of beef patties the following month, it brought more lawsuits by Marler.

He is also suing ConaAgra Foods Inc., which recalled its Banquet chicken pot pies and Peter Pan peanut butter last year after they were found to be contaminated with salmonella.

"He's a good lawyer and he does a fine job for his clients," says Leo Knowles, ConAgra's top lawyer. "He's passionate about food safety. At times he's a little bit overly dramatic, but I think he's genuine."

Marler continually implores the food industry to "put me out of business" by adopting more stringent safety procedures. He sent the lettuce industry a letter in 2006 in which he called on growers to stop using irrigation water contaminated with cattle and human feces, to wash fruits and vegetables more thoroughly, and to provide field hands with bathrooms.

"These steps will help make our food supply safer and will enable us to keep our most vulnerable citizens — kids and seniors — out of harm's way," he wrote. "And, with a little luck, it will force one damn trial lawyer to find another line of work."

Marler holds degrees from Washington State University and the Seattle University School of Law. He has no formal scientific training but has immersed himself in microbiology and DNA tracing, and his firm has a scientist on staff on whom he relies.

Marler handled about 150 cases from the deadly 2006 E. coli outbreak involving California spinach, settling roughly half those cases so far with companies such as Dole Foods. Among the clients whose cases are still unresolved is 3-year-old Ashley Armstrong of Indianapolis, whose kidneys were so damaged she will have to take medication for the rest of her life and will probably need a transplant, according to her mother.

He also has been settling dozens of cases against Taco Bell stemming from a 2006 E. coli outbreak that sickened 71 people in five states.

Marler fell into food safety litigation almost by accident.

Brianne Kiner, 9, of Seattle was the first among hundreds who fell ill in the Jack in the Box outbreak. Six lawyers trekked to her bedside during the six months she spent in the hospital, hoping to represent the family. The Kiners hired Marler, a young associate at a mid-size law firm who had never worked on a food case.

"I wanted a young, hungry lion," recalls Suzanne Kiner, Brianne's mother. "He was also the only one who looked at her and teared up."

Against all odds, Brianne survived and lives in a house bought with some of the $15.6 million Marler extracted from the restaurant chain for the Kiners. But Brianne, now 25, still suffers from high blood pressure and immune system damage that makes her prone to colds and flu.

"I call him Uncle Bill," the young woman says. "I think it's incredible what he did, and I'm very thankful that he helped me."

Marler says: "When I started doing the Jack in the Box case in 1993, I never dreamed that I would be doing this in 2008. Unfortunately, it never seems to slow down."

Abusing Downer Cows and Feeding Them to Our Kids - It is All About Making a Buck

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 03, 2008

The recent YouTube video is certainly shocking, but nothing new - we have simply not been paying attention.

Schools are scrambling to pull downer meat off the menu because cows are being abused, and even Agricultural Secretary Ed Schafers issues a statement on downer cow brutality:

"I am deeply concerned about the allegations made regarding inhumane handling of non-ambulatory disabled cattle in a federally inspected slaughter establishment…. We are confident in our inspection system and the food safety regulations that ensure the safety and wholesomeness of the food supply. Among the federal safeguards in place, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) prohibits non-ambulatory disabled cattle and cattle tissue identified as specified risk materials for use in human food.

Oh really? But, then no one is talking about the USDA study published in August 2004 that found that downer cows had three times more E. coli O15:H7 than other cows, or the 1985 study linking chloramphenicol-resistant Salmonella newport traced through hamburger to dairy farms. We worry about abused cows, or dogs and cats being poisoned by the Chinese, but do we worry about feeding cow shit to our kids?

I knew this all sounded a bit too familiar. KIRO TV in Seattle covered this same story in 2002 and 2003 (nasty video's too) – “Downer Industry Thrives Despite Consumers' Concerns,” and Elizabeth Weise of USA TODAY broke the same story in 2004 – “Ban on 'downers' could change way cattle are raised” - The bottom line is that it is all about money. As Ms. Weise reported:

Chandler Keys of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association says the 150,000 to 200,000 downers a year are a fraction of the 35 million U.S. cattle slaughtered each year…. An estimated 3% to 4% of beef cattle are downers. But research in Wisconsin and Minnesota in 2003 found 23% of dairy cattle were lame. Dairy cattle are more likely to become downers in part because they live longer…. Beef cattle are slaughtered in their prime.

Downers banned - do not bet on it. A 2006 audit (PDF) by the USDA's inspector general found downer cows were still being processed for food and that USDA's policy was inconsistent. At two of 12 plants visited from June 2004 to April 2005, downer cattle were slaughtered for food. One facility processed 27 of them, the other slaughtered two.

So, here is the real deal: A downer cow typically brings $250 to $300 at slaughter. Sending the same animal to a rendering plant costs the owner $20 to $50 per carcass. Do the math.

One other question - where do raw milk cows go?

Minnesota Department of Health and CDC Pins Name on Pig Slaughterhouse Illness - Progressive Inflammatory Neuropathy

Posted by Food Poisoning Attorney on February 01, 2008

Lauran Neergaard of the AP again breaks another disturbing story about the dangers of our food supply. She reports this evening that Investigators are preparing to test pig brains as they struggle to tell what is causing a mysterious nerve illness affecting pork plant workers in Minnesota and Indiana. The CDC and Minnesota Department of Health are calling the condition "progressive inflammatory neuropathy" - meaning something is triggering inflammation serious enough to damage nerves. All 14 employees who became ill worked near powerful compressed air systems that blow brains out of pig heads at what is known as the head table. Both plants have stopped using the process.

Schools, Burger Chains Ban Beef from Hallmark and Westland

Posted by E. coli Attorney on February 01, 2008

The Associated Press reported that hamburger chains Jack-In-the-Box and In-N-Out, as well more than 150 school districts around the nation, have banned meat from a Chino, California slaughterhouse after a video showed workers brutalizing sick and crippled cows. School districts in at least 11 states have stopped using ground beef from Hallmark Meat Packing Co. and its associated Westland Meat Co. until a federal investigation is complete.

Jack in the Box, which has restaurants in 18 states, told its meat suppliers not to use Hallmark until further notice. The San Diego-based company does not purchase meat directly from slaughterhouses, so it was unclear whether it had used any Hallmark meat, she said. In-N-Out, an Irvine-based chain, also halted use of the beef, saying it would never condone the inhumane treatment of animals. McDonald's, the world's largest fast-food chain, said it does not do business with the slaughterhouse. Burger King, based in Miami, said it does not buy beef from the packing house and has no connection to the supplier.

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