The Salmonella attorneys at Marler Clark, the nation’s leading law firm dedicated to representing victims of foodborne illness, along with Rochester, NY-based Underberg & Kessler, have filed a lawsuit on behalf of a Rochester-area mother and daughter who contracted Salmonella illnesses after consuming Turkish pine nuts imported by American Pistachio Commodity Corp. This the second Salmonella lawsuit filed by the law firms in a 42-person outbreak linked to pine nuts sold to Wegman’s stores by American Pistachio, which operates out of New Jersey under the name “Sunrise Commodities”.
According to the complaint filed (#11CV6565T) in New York Federal District Court, Kimberly Waterbury of Webster, NY, purchased Turkish pine nuts at a local Wegmans grocery store in late August. In the days following purchase, Ms. Waterbury and her 16-year-old daughter consumed the pine nuts. On approximately August 31, the girl began developing gastrointestinal symptoms indicative of a Salmonella illness. The symptoms worsened until September 3, at which point the girl was taken to the emergency room. She was released that same day, but was forced to return to the ER on September 5. The complaint further states that Ms. Waterbury herself fell ill with a Salmonella infection on September 7. Health officials have notified the family that both illnesses have been linked to the multi-state Salmonella outbreak associated with Turkish pine nuts sold at Wegmans stores.
“The Salmonella lawsuits we’ve filed to date are intended to achieve fair and reasonable compensation for those harmed in this outbreak,” said the Waterburys’ attorney, William Marler. “Moreover, I believe that by standing up to companies who have harmed consumers, people like the Waterburys are helping to make sure this type of occurrence is not repeated.”
On November 3, 2011 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that at least 42 people across five states had been made ill with Salmonella Enteritidis infections. At the same time the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that Wegmans Food Markets had recalled 5,000 pounds of pine nuts imported from Turkey. Wegmans is not named in either lawsuit.
MARLER CLARK is the nation’s only law firm dedicated solely to representing victims of foodborne illness. The firm’s Salmonella lawyers have unparalleled experience and since 1993, have recovered over $600 million dollars for people affected by food poisoning. For more information, contact Cody Moore at cmoore@marlerclark.com or 206-407-2200.