Turkey Salmonella Lawyer Questions Cargill's Response to Contamination
Food safety lawyer Fred Pritzker is questioning the prolonged length of time between the commencement of the ground turkey Salmonella outbreak in early March and Cargill's 36-million pound recall on August 3.
"The whole idea is you are supposed to detect the problem before people get sick,'' Pritzker told the Star Tribune newspaper of Minneapolis.
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Tough questions are being raised around the country by Pritzker and others about why consumers were not warned earlier of the outbreak, which led to a Salmonella death of a woman in Sacramento County, California, and sickened at least 77 others in 26 states. Nearly 40 percent of case patients were hospitalized and doctors have reported that the outbreak strain has been resistant to some commonly prescribed antibiotics.
USA Today reporter Elizabeth Weisse, a veteran of covering foodborne illness outbreaks, noted in a story today that the recall happened a full 13 days after government officials "connected most of the dots linking the Salmonella outbreak to a turkey grinding plant in Springdale, Arkansas.'' USDA first contacted Cargil July 29 with findings that associated the Arkansas plant with the outbreak. At that time, a ground turkey Salmonella warning was issued, but Cargill was not named and the recall was delayed until August 3.
Pritzker, a leading advocate for victims of food poisoning, has launched an investigation to determine plant conditions that led to contamination of so many finished turkey products over such a long time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) started to collect evidence of the outbreak in March. The recall of adulterated turkey dates back to February.
Salmonella lawyers at Pritzker's law firm have established a claims center for victims -- a clearinghouse for Cargill lawsuit information -- available at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or by submitting your contact information. One of the leading practitioners of foodborne illness litigation in the United States, PritzkerOlsen is based near the worldwide headquarters of Cargill and has gone up against the multinational conglomerate in previous outbreaks. Over the years we have collected tens of millions of dollars for victims of Salmonella poisoning.
