Contaminated Food & Food Poisoning

by Md Delower Hossain

Your Rights under the Law 

Over the last decade it seem that every year there are more and more reports of massive agricultural and other consumables being recalled. From beef to eggs to lettuce to canned chili and even peanut butter, nearly every type of food product has caused countless illnesses and even deaths.

Every single one of these cases involved contamination due to unsanitary conditions or improper storage or [canning] due in part to safety procedures and regulations being overlooked. So, what can you do if you or a loved one has become ill or even died due to contaminated food?

Federal law requires food product manufacturers in the United States to take specific steps to ensure that the product they sell is safe for normal use. When a product is contaminated or unsafe, consumers injured by the product have the right to pursue legal recourse tom compensate them for their injuries. But these cases are best left to experienced attorneys as the companies you will attempt to seek compensation from typically have a team of dozens if not hundreds of attorneys ready to use every trick in the book to dismiss your case or keep your settlement at minimal expense to them. In addition to this there are often a large number of parties involved in the process of getting a cut of meat or piece of fruit or baked good from the raw ingredients to the product consumers buy in the store, so this can make determining the chain of liability an extremely complex and sometimes impossible task without the aid of an experienced Contaminated Food Lawyer.

Technological advances in RFID have enabled food producers who implement them to track each piece of produce from harvest to delivery truck to end retailer, making it easier to contain food contamination outbreaks, but these measures are not foolproof. Whether we want to think about it or not, contamination can come from conditions as simple as field workers failing to wash their hands after harvesting spinach or a grocery store bakery worker leaving a carrot cake with cream cheese icing out of the refrigerator for too long. Frankly, most of the E. Coli outbreaks are quite simply the result of animal feces coming in contact with the meat or other products. As you can imagine, it should be fairly simple to keep animal waste away from food so a failure to do so is generally a strong indication of negligence.

There are many potential defendants in a food contamination liability case, but some are more worthwhile to pursue than others. The Food Contamination Attorneys at Grossman Law Offices have a great deal of expertise at investigating these issues and helping you understand against whom you may have a viable claim.