Plaintiffs in the Midwest who claim they were sickened by E. coli-contaminated lettuce are suing a California grower, alleging that the grower’s produce was the cause of the outbreak even though federal investigators never publicly named a culprit.
One of the lawsuits, which was filed in the Eastern District of Missouri on April 15, named Salinas-based Taylor Farms California as the defendant. In the complaint, plaintiff Cynthia Hefling of Wildwood, Mo., alleges that Taylor Farms was the source of contaminated romaine lettuce that caused her to suffer hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), or acute kidney failure.
The lawsuit describes an E. coli outbreak in November of last year that produced 89 individual cases affecting 15 states, including Missouri and Indiana. Among these, there were seven people who reported HUS, 36 hospitalizations and one death, the complaint states.
An investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration “confirmed” that Taylor Farms romaine lettuce was the source of the outbreak, though the federal agencies never made a public announcement linking the outbreak to the Salinas grower, according to the lawsuit.
Taylor Farms denied its produce was the source of contamination that caused the outbreak.
“Taylor Farms produce WAS NOT the source of the referenced 2024 E. coli outbreak,” the company said in a statement emailed to the Southern California Record. “We perform extensive raw- and finished-product testing on all our products, and there was no evidence of contamination.
The company’s leafy greens go through extensive sampling and pathogen-testing programs using state-of-the-art equipment, according to information provided by Taylor Farms, and it employs wash systems that are verified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“Any reporting that connects Taylor Farms products to these heartbreaking illnesses is dangerous, irresponsible and unfair to the impacted families,” the Taylor Farms statement said.
A food safety expert, Frank Yiannas, the founder of Smarter FY Solutions, indicated that there may have been insufficient evidence for authorities to identify the source of the E. coli outbreak.
“If the FDA lacked sufficient scientific evidence to publicly identify a farm or firm, it would make sense for them not to name a company, as incorrectly identifying or implicating a food or firm without sufficient evidence would be reckless (and) unfairly damage the livelihood of a farmer and/or producer …” Yiannas said. He added that making such unsubstantiated allegations could reduce public trust in the FDA and the nation’s food industry.
The plaintiff’s attorney, William Marler, said that, under the Trump administration, the federal agencies failed to report a connection between the outbreak and Taylor Farms.
“It is disappointing, but with 20,000 employees at Health and Human Services (HHS) being fired, investigating and reporting on outbreaks and alerting the public to the cause is clearly not a priority for this administration,” Marler said in a prepared statement. “If the gutted CDC and FDA can no longer do the job, we will step up to inform and protect the public – so much for ‘Make America Healthy Again (MAHA).’”
The company said it is evaluating all avenues of legal action to defend itself. Two other lawsuits by plaintiffs who said they were injured during the outbreak were filed in Indiana. The allegations in the Missouri lawsuit include negligence and breach of warranty.
The science behind the allegations includes efforts to determine the strain of E. coli that caused the infections.
“(Missouri) colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study at two of the events (linked to the E. coli infections) and found that salads were the only statistically significant menu item across both events,” the lawsuit says. “Salads contained an iceberg/romaine lettuce blend, carrots, purple cabbage, onions, canned pimento, canned artichokes, parmesan cheese and a house-made salad dressing.”