Suits Coming Home to Roost in Cargill Turkey Case

Cargill faces the first of what's likely to be a flock of lawsuits in connection with the recall of salmonella-contaminated ground turkey.

The suit was filed by parents whose baby girl was hospitalized with antibiotic-resistant salmonella poisoning from Cargill ground turkey that's been linked to the poisoning of 107 people in 31 states, one of whom died, Courthouse News Service reported.

Melissa Lee and Brandon Mullen-Bagby, of Troutdale, Ore., say their daughter, Ruby Jane Lee, became ill in June after eating spaghetti and meat balls containing ground turkey produced by Cargill.

Ruby, who was 10 months old at the time, had diarrhea and, when her fever spiked to more than 102 degrees, she was taken Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center in Clackamas, Ore. The doctors there prescribed Tylenol.

Blood tests

Though the diarrhea persisted, Ruby's symptoms improved somewhat over the next several days. Then, on June 14, Lee took Ruby to the family's pediatrician at Kaiser, who ordered blood tests.

On June 15, the doctor called and told Lee to take Ruby to Doernbecher Children's Hospital immediately, saying that Salmonella Heidelberg bacteria she had ingested from the defendants' ground turkey product had gotten into her bloodsteam, and she needed urgent care.

Ruby spent seven days at Doernbecher. She was discharged on June 21 and continued her recovery at home

Cargill recalled 36 million pounds of ground turkey products on August 4. The Salmonella involved in the outbreak is an antibiotic-resistant strain of Salmonella Heidelberg. As of August 5, 2011, investigators had collected antibiotic resistance information on isolates from four samples of ground turkey collected at retail and from nine (9) ill persons infected with the strain.

Lengthy history

The lawsuit notes that Cargill has a lengthy history of recalls and association with food-borne illness outbreaks, including:

• 1993 - Cargill supplied meat to Northwest Sizzler restaurants that was implicated in an outbreak of E. coli involving 39 confirmed and 54 probable cases. Public health investigators said the illnesses were the result of cross-contamination between raw Cargill Tri-tips and salad bar ingredients.

• 2000 - Cargill provided meat to Sizzler restaurants linked to an outbreak of E. coli illnesses that killed one person and sickened 62.

• 2000 - Sliced turkey from a Cargill processing plant in Texas was found to be the source of a multi-state outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes. The company recalled 16 million pounds of turkey after reports of infection that eventually included seven deaths and 29 illnesses. Eight of the case patients were pregnant and three miscarriages/stillbirths were attributed to the contaminated turkey.

• 2001 - Cargill ground beef patties tested positive for E. coli after a child from Georgia became ill. Three of the patties were purchased at Kroger and one from Sam's Club, but all of the ill children and the tested meat had genetically indistinguishable strains of E. coli.

• 2002 - Antibiotic-resistant Salmonella Newport was found in ground beef from Emmpaq, a Cargill subsidiary. The CDC reported one fatality,47 illnesses and 12 hospitalizations linked to consumption of the ground beef. Emmpak recalled a record 2.8 million pounds of potentially contaminated ground beef.

• 2007 - After Minnesota health officials traced 46 E. coli illnesses to ground beef patties, Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation recalled 845,000 pounds of frozen ground beef patties from retail locations across the U.S.

• 2007 - Cargill recalled 1,084,384 pounds of ground beef after federal tests detected E. coli in the product. No illnesses were associated with this recall.

• 2008 - Beef cheek produced by Beef Packers, a Cargill subsidiary, tested positive for E coli, prompting a 1,560 pound recall. No illnesses were associated with this recall.

• 2009 - At least 40 cases of Salmonella Newport infection were linked to Beef Packen ground beef in the summer, sparking a summertime recall of 830,000 pounds of ground beef. Then, in December, more Salmonella illnesses tied to the producer's meat led to a recall of 20,000 pounds of products. Both recalls involved contamination with drug-resistant Salmonella bacteria.

• 2010 - Cargill Meat Solutions recalled 8,500 pounds of ground beef after reports of illnesses caused by E. coli 026, a rare strain of the bacteria that produces the same Shiga-like toxin as more common strains. The meat was distributed by BJ's Wholesale Club.

• 2011 - Cargill Meat Solutions recalled 36 million pounds of ground turkey linked to an outbreak of drug-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg. Current outbreak numbers: one dead, 107 ill, 22 hospitalized.

Since 1993, Cargill has been the source of contaminated meat implicated in at least l0 major outbreaks, 10 deaths, three stillbirths and 366 illness, the suit charges.

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