--- title: Dungeness Valley Creamery Raw Milk E. coli Outbreak Lawsuits date: 2026-07-10T15:21:00-07:00 author: Julie Dueck canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/china-buffet-linked-to-listeria-outbreak-sickening-five-in-tampa" section: Litigation Landing Pages --- [Foodborne Illnesses](/foodborne-illnesses) / [E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli) / # Dungeness Valley Creamery Raw Milk E. coli Outbreak Lawsuits **Dungeness Valley Creamery Raw Milk *E. coli* Outbreak Lawsuits** Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is investigating the 2026 Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* outbreak linked to raw milk from Dungeness Valley Creamery of Sequim, Washington. ● Cases: 4 ● Hospitalizations: 0 ● Deaths: 0 ● Pathogen: Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* (STEC), one highly related strain ● Illness onsets: May 28 through June 4, 2026 ● Product: Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk, Sequim, Washington ● Locations: Oregon, Snohomish County and King County in Washington, and a Texas resident who tested positive while visiting Washington ● Status: Washington State Department of Health named the creamery’s raw milk the most likely source on July 2, 2026. No recall was issued. No news release was issued. **Four people were infected with the same strain of *E. coli* between May 28 and June 4, 2026** The Washington State Department of Health investigated four Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* infections with illness onsets between May 28 and June 4, 2026. Whole genome sequencing showed the four isolates were highly related, which means the four people shared a source. Two of them had been drinking Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk shortly before they got sick: an Oregon resident who bought it on May 25 and a Snohomish County resident who bought it on May 28. A King County resident had been drinking raw milk but declined to name the brand. A Texas resident tested positive while visiting Washington and could not be interviewed. DOH concluded that the creamery’s raw milk was the most likely source of exposure and posted its findings on [an outbreak page](https://doh.wa.gov/you-and-your-family/illness-and-disease-z/foodborne-illness/outbreaks/2026-shiga-toxin-producing-e-coli-stec-infection-outbreak-linked-raw-milk-consumption) on July 2, 2026. No one was hospitalized. No one died. There was no news release, and for two months there was no news coverage — not in the Peninsula Daily News, not in the Sequim Gazette, both of which have covered every recall, alert and all-clear at this dairy for more than a decade. If you drank this milk in May or June of 2026 and got sick, it is entirely possible that nobody told you. **The state’s only milk sample was collected nineteen days after the last known purchase** The Washington State Department of Agriculture samples every licensed raw milk dairy once a month. Its routine Dungeness Valley Creamery sample, collected June 16, 2026, tested negative for STEC, and DOH says that is why no recall was recommended. The last known purchase by an ill person was May 28. The sample came nineteen days later. Raw milk lasts days, not weeks. The milk those four people drank was gone long before the sampler arrived, and a negative result on June 16 says nothing about milk bottled in late May. The state has run into this before at this same dairy: in 2018, after two people were sickened and every sample came back clean, health officials [told the Peninsula Daily News](https://peninsuladailynews.com/news/creamery-samples-show-no-e-coli-after-state-investigation) that the batch that infected them was no longer available for testing. It happened again in May 2025, when three people were infected with STEC after drinking [Cowlitz Hill Guernseys](https://doh.wa.gov/you-and-your-family/illness-and-disease-z/foodborne-illness/outbreaks/2025-shiga-toxin-producing-e-coli-stec-infection-outbreak-linked-raw-milk-consumption) raw milk, one was hospitalized, the May 5 sample was negative, and there was no recall. **Since 2009 the dairy has been linked to four outbreaks and fourteen illnesses, and its milk has been pulled from sale six times** Dungeness Valley Creamery has held a WSDA raw milk license since 2006. The public record: **Year** **What happened** **Reported illnesses** **Product pulled from sale** 2009 At least three people infected after drinking the creamery’s raw whole milk; *E. coli* O121 confirmed, O157:H7 suspected. WSDA found no *E. coli* in the current batch, but its investigation at the dairy turned up the same bacteria that caused one of the illnesses. Farm then run by Jeff and Debbie Brown. 3 No 2013 WSDA warned consumers off raw whole milk, skim milk and cream with best-by dates of March 2 or later after a February 19 cream sample tested positive for STEC. The creamery stopped making cream. 0 Yes 2014 Owners warned customers off milk and cream with a July 2 expiration after a preliminary WSDA result on cream. Follow-up tests negative; sales resumed after three days. 0 Yes 2018 DOH announced on September 7 that a child under 5 from Island County and a woman in her 70s from Clallam County had *E. coli* infections after drinking the creamery’s raw milk. All 21 WSDA samples were negative. Production never stopped. 2 No 2019 (April) Recall of whole milk, skim milk and cream with best-by dates of April 6 through 20 after STEC turned up in whole milk dated April 6. More than 1,000 gallons dumped; WSDA cleared the dairy April 22. 0 Yes 2019 (June) Recall of product with best-by dates of June 5 through 14 after a June 5 sample tested positive — the third positive of the year. Cleared in three days. 0 Yes 2020 After WSDA found STEC in raw cream dated September 29, the creamery advised customers to stop using milk and cream with best-by dates of September 29 and 30. Seven follow-up samples negative. 0 Yes 2021 Five people who drank the creamery’s raw milk, bought in Clallam, Skagit, Kitsap and Clark counties, tested positive for *Campylobacter*. All raw milk with best-by dates of April 13 or earlier recalled; distribution stopped. Traced to a single cow, which was put down. 5 Yes 2026 Four STEC infections between May 28 and June 4. DOH named the creamery’s raw milk the most likely source on July 2. The June 16 WSDA sample was negative. 4 No Reported illnesses: 3 + 2 + 5 + 4 = 14 across four outbreaks. Product pulled from sale in 2013, 2014, twice in 2019, 2020 and 2021 — six times. State samples were positive for STEC in 2013, three times in 2019, and in 2020. In three of the four outbreaks — 2009, 2018 and 2026 — the state never found the bacteria in the milk. A license and a monthly test do not make raw milk safe. They tell you, after the fact, that something got through, and sometimes not even that. The full record, with links to every recall notice and news account, is in [our September 2, 2026 report on this outbreak](https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/four-e-coli-cases-tied-to-dungeness-valley-creamery-raw-milk-no-recall-no-headlines/). **If you drank this milk and got sick, preserve the evidence — and ask that your isolate be saved** Keep the bottle, the receipt, or a photograph of either, along with the date you bought the milk and the date your symptoms started. Most important, if you gave a stool sample, ask the laboratory and your local health department to preserve your isolate. Whole genome sequencing is what connects one person’s illness to an outbreak strain, and isolates are routinely discarded once a case is closed. In an outbreak where the state never found the bacteria in the product, the isolate taken from the patient can be the only physical evidence there is. **You may have a claim even though the state never found *E. coli* in the milk** Washington law treats contaminated food as a defective product. A person injured by it does not have to prove that a regulator found the pathogen in the bottle. What matters is what you drank, when you drank it, and whether your infection is genetically linked to the outbreak strain — which is again why the isolate matters. Sellers of raw milk sometimes argue that the warning label required on the bottle shifts the risk to the buyer. Whether that argument goes anywhere depends on the facts and on the law of the state where the sale and the illness occurred. Filing deadlines vary by state and by the type of injury, and they can run quickly. The people sickened in this outbreak live in Oregon, Washington and Texas, and different rules may apply to each of them. A free case evaluation is the fastest way to find out where you stand. **What Marler Clark is examining** ● WSDA sampling records, inspection reports and any notices issued to the creamery ● The dairy’s own independent laboratory testing, which its owner said in 2019 had been running since that April ● The DOH investigation file, including the sequencing data and the case interviews ● Where the milk was sold — in past events it reached retailers in Clallam, Snohomish, King, Skagit, Kitsap and Clark counties — and whether it crossed state lines ● Herd health, milking practices and environmental testing at the farm ● Whether anyone else was sickened in May or June of 2026 and never reported it, because no one was told to look **Our raw milk record** Marler Clark has represented raw milk and raw dairy victims across the country since the [2005 Dee Creek Farm outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/dee-creek-farm-e-coli-outbreak-washington-oregon) in Woodland, Washington, which sickened at least 18 people in Washington and Oregon and hospitalized five Clark County children, two of them with HUS. The firm helped fund and build [RealRawMilkFacts.com](https://www.realrawmilkfacts.com/), a public clearinghouse on raw milk outbreaks and the science behind them. It is currently litigating a Washington raw dairy case, Tissot v. Twin Sisters Creamery, LLC, in Snohomish County Superior Court, arising from the 2025 STEC outbreak tied to that creamery’s aged raw milk cheese. Marler Clark also reported on this dairy’s [2009 outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/dungeness-valley-creamery-e.-coli-outbreak-washington-state) and its [2018 outbreak](https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/dungeness-valley-creamery-raw-milk-linked-to-e-coli-illnesses-again/) as they happened. **Frequently asked questions** **Is Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk linked to an *E. coli* outbreak?** Yes. The Washington State Department of Health says four people were infected with the same strain of Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* between May 28 and June 4, 2026, and that raw milk from Dungeness Valley Creamery in Sequim, Washington is the most likely source. No one was hospitalized and no one died. DOH posted its findings on July 2, 2026. **Was Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk recalled in 2026?** No. A routine WSDA sample collected June 16, 2026 — nineteen days after the last known purchase by an ill person — tested negative for STEC, and DOH says that is why no recall was recommended. Raw milk from late May was long gone by the time that sample was taken. **How many outbreaks and recalls has Dungeness Valley Creamery had?** Four outbreaks with fourteen reported illnesses since 2009: *E. coli* in 2009, 2018 and 2026, and *Campylobacter* in 2021. Its raw milk has been pulled from sale six times — in 2013, 2014, twice in 2019, 2020 and 2021. **How many raw milk outbreaks has Washington had?** DOH [counts at least eleven](https://doh.wa.gov/you-and-your-family/illness-and-disease-z/foodborne-illness/outbreaks/2024-campylobacteriosis-raw-milk) from 2005 through 2024: seven Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli*, three *Campylobacter* and one *Salmonella*. Cowlitz Hill Guernseys in 2025 and Dungeness Valley Creamery in 2026 make thirteen, without counting the ten people sickened by Twin Sisters Creamery raw milk cheese in 2025. **What is *E. coli*?** *E. coli* O157:H7 is a Shiga toxin-producing strain of *Escherichia coli* that causes severe, sometimes life-threatening food poisoning. Most people develop painful stomach cramps and bloody diarrhea three to four days after exposure, and about 5 to 10 percent of victims — often young children — go on to develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a form of acute kidney failure. **What foods cause *E. coli* outbreaks?** Ground beef, raw milk, leafy greens such as romaine and spinach, sprouts, unpasteurized juice and raw flour have all been linked to *E. coli* O157:H7. Any food contaminated with even a trace of cattle feces can carry it. **What is HUS, and is it permanent?** Hemolytic uremic syndrome is the most common cause of acute kidney failure in young children. Many children recover, but some are left with lasting kidney damage, high blood pressure or neurological injury and need lifelong monitoring. **Can I sue if I got *E. coli* from raw milk?** If a contaminated food caused your infection, you may have a product-liability claim against the dairy, the processor or the retailer that sold it. The key questions are what you drank, when you drank it, and whether your illness is genetically linked to a known outbreak strain. **How long do I have to file an *E. coli* lawsuit?** Filing deadlines, called statutes of limitation, vary by state and by the type of injury, and they can run quickly. A free case evaluation is the fastest way to learn where you stand. **Talk to a lawyer about the Dungeness Valley Creamery outbreak** If you or a family member developed an *E. coli* infection or HUS after drinking Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk, or any raw milk, and you want to understand your legal options, contact the Marler Clark *E. coli*attorneys for a free case evaluation. Call 1-800-884-9840, write to bmarler@marlerclark.com, or use the form at [marlerclark.com/contact](https://marlerclark.com/contact). There is no charge to talk to us. **Other *E. coli* lawsuits** ● [Marler Clark *E. coli* lawsuits and litigation](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/e-coli-litigation) ● [Frozen blueberry *E. coli* O145 outbreak](https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/frozen-blueberry-e-coli-outbreak-update-17-sick-6-hospitalized-in-florida-and-georgia-as-recall-expands-to-walmart-great-value-triple-berry-blend/) ● [Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk, 2018](https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/dungeness-valley-creamery-raw-milk-linked-to-e-coli-illnesses-again/) ● [Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk, 2009](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/dungeness-valley-creamery-e.-coli-outbreak-washington-state) **About William “Bill” Marler** William “Bill” Marler has spent more than thirty years as a food safety lawyer and advocate — work that began with the 1993 Jack in the Box *E. coli* outbreak and has never really stopped since. In the years that followed, he has represented victims in nearly every major foodborne illness outbreak in the United States. That case, and the movement it launched, is the subject of the book Poisoned and the Emmy Award-winning Netflix documentary of the same name. Bill’s work has been profiled in The New Yorker (“A Bug in the System”), the Seattle Times (“30 years after the deadly *E. coli* outbreak, a Seattle attorney still fights for food safety”), the Washington Post (“He helped make burgers safer. Now he’s fighting food poisoning again”), and many others. Dozens of times a year, Bill speaks to industry, regulators and universities across the United States, Canada, Europe, Africa, China and Australia about a simple idea: outbreaks are preventable. He has testified before Congress on the Food Safety Modernization Act and teaches food safety at institutions including the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. He writes regularly about food litigation and food safety at [Marler Blog](https://www.marlerblog.com/), and in 2009 he founded [Food Safety News](https://www.foodsafetynews.com/), which he continues to publish. ***E. coli*** *E. coli* O157:H7 is the pathogen that built this firm. In its worst form it produces a Shiga toxin that shuts down the kidneys — hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS — and its victims are too often children. Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the nation’s leading firm for *E. coli* and HUS cases. Our *E. coli* lawyers have stood beside thousands of families in the only U.S. law practice devoted exclusively to foodborne illness, which has recovered more than $850 million for victims and families nationwide. We have traced *E. coli* to ground beef, raw milk, lettuce, spinach, sprouts and much more, and we have brought cases against Jack in the Box, Dole, ConAgra, Cargill and Jimmy John’s. Among those we have been honored to represent are Brianne Kiner, Stephanie Smith and Linda Rivera. Our advocacy has reached beyond the courtroom as well: we helped push the federal government to declare *E. coli* O157:H7 — and later six additional Shiga toxin-producing strains — adulterants in ground beef, and we have funded independent research into the pathogen to push the science forward. ### E. coli news and updates November 08, 2022 ###### [16 days hospitalized: Summer E. Coli outbreak linked to Wendy's takes a toll on Michiganders](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/16-days-hospitalized-summer-e-coli-outbreak-linked-to-wendys-takes-a-toll-on-michiganders) The Marler Clark, E. coli attorneys represent 48 victims of the Wendy's E. coli outbreak. A total of 109 people from six states, including New … September 27, 2022 ###### [Chipotle E. coli Outbreak (2015)](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/chipotle-e-coli-outbreak-multistate-2015) The initial, larger STEC O26 outbreak was first detected by public health officials in Washington and Oregon through local foodborne disease surveillance. In late October … June 04, 2022 ###### [E. coli Outbreak linked to Pennsylvania Pool](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/e-coli-outbreak-linked-to-pennsylvania-pool) On June 7, 2021, the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PADOH) received multiple complaints of gastrointestinal illness from patrons of a community swimming pool. Two patrons … [1. View all ](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/outbreaks) ## All E. coli Resources [###### E. coli Food Poisoning ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-food-poisoning) [###### E. coli O157:H7 ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-o157h7) [###### Non-O157 STEC ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/non-o157-stec) [###### Sources of E. coli ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/sources-of-e-coli) [###### Transmission of and Infection with E. coli ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/transmission-of-and-infection-with-e-coli) [###### Symptoms of E. coli infection ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/symptoms-of-e-coli-infection) [###### Complications of E. coli infection ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/complications-of-e-coli-infection) [###### Treatment for E. coli infection ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/treatment-for-e-coli-infection) [###### How is E. coli Infection Diagnosed? ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/how-is-e-coli-infection-diagnosed) [###### Preventing E. coli Infection ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/preventing-e-coli-infection) [###### E. coli Outbreaks ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-outbreaks) [###### Real Life Impacts of E. coli Infection and HUS ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/real-life-impacts-of-e-coli-infection-and-hus) [###### E. coli Recalls ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-recalls) [###### References ](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/references) ### Other foodborne illnesses [E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli) [Salmonella](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/salmonella) [Listeria](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/listeria) [Hepatitis A](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/hepatitis-a) [Reactive Arthritis](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/reactive-arthritis) [Guillain-Barre Syndrome](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/guillain-barre-syndrome) [Irritable Bowel Syndrome](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/irritable-bowel-syndrome) [Norovirus](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/norovirus) [Botulism](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/botulism) [Campylobacter](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter) [Shigella](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/shigella) [Cyclospora](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora) [Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/hemolytic-uremic-syndrome)