Attorney Fred Pritzker and the food safety attorneys at Pritzker Hageman recently won over $4,000,000 for an E. coli victim in Michigan who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome. Fred and his team are now investigating an outbreak of E. coli poisoning in Antrim County that may have been caused by unpasteurized apple cider. You can contact Fred for a free E. coli case review here.
Health officials are testing samples of unpasteurized apple cider that was produced in the county by an unlicensed facility. The apple cider was sold without the warning labels required by Michigan law for unpasteurized products. If E. coli bacteria are found in the cider, genetic testing (PFGE) will be done to see if the DNA fingerprint of the bacteria in the cider matches the DNA fingerprint of the bacteria that sickened the Antrim County residents. If so, that would be “smoking gun” evidence that the apple cider caused the illnesses. If not, other evidence, including interviews with victims about what they ate (epidemiological evidence) can often still prove that the apple cider caused the outbreak.
The problem with unpasteurized apple cider is that any dangerous pathogens in the cider are not killed by the heat of pasteurization. Several past E. coli outbreaks have been linked to unpasteurized apple cider, which is still sold in most states with restrictions. In Michigan, there has to be a warning label.
Children are at greatest risk of getting a life-threatening complication of an E. coli infection called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). One sip of apple cider contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 or another Shiga-toxin producing E. coli, could result in serious injury or wrongful death. HUS causes kidney failure (renal failure), brain damage (seizures, stroke, coma), blindness, heart failure, pancreatitis and other problems.
You can talk to Fred or another E. coli lawyer at our law firm for free at 1-888-377-8900 (toll free).
