Attorney Fred Pritzker and his Bad Bug Law Team® are investigating the Tyson chicken Salmonella Heidelberg outbreak that has sickened at least 9 people in a Tennessee correctional facility in Bradley County. There are two facilities in the county: Bradley County Jail and Bradley County Juvenile Detention Center, both in Cleveland, TN.
Fred is representing victims of another Salmonella Heidelberg outbreak linked to chicken processed by another company, Foster Farms, and now he is providing free case reviews to victims of this outbreak. An inmate sickened in this outbreak has the right to sue for Salmonella food poisoning.
“I am representing a client who needed brain surgery after eating another brand of chicken that was contaminated with Salmonella Heidelberg,” said Fred, who has won millions for his clients in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits. “Companies that sell contaminated food should be held accountable. Money won in a settlement or verdict does not bring back health, but it does give outbreak victims and their families some sense of justice.” You can click here now to contact our lawyers.
In response to the outbreak at the Tennessee correctional facility, Tyson Foods, Inc. a Sedalia, Missouri, company, issued a recall of approximately 33,840 pounds of mechanically separated chicken products that may be contaminated with a Salmonella Heidelberg. The chicken was produced on Oct. 11, 2013. It was sold in 40-lb. cases, containing four, 10-lb. chubs of “TYSON MECHANICALLY SEPARATED CHICKEN.”
The recalled chicken bears the establishment number “P-13556” inside the USDA mark of inspection, with case code 2843SDL1412 – 18. These products were shipped for institutional use (like at prisons and other correctional facilities) only, nationwide.
It is not clear if the company knew that the chicken was contaminated with Salmonella before they shipped it. Even if they had, it is possible that federal law would not have required them to recall the chicken and not sell it raw.
Fred is urging changes that would make Salmonella an “adulterant” under federal law. “Unless we can get federal law and policy changed, federal inspectors will not be able to force a recall of chicken contaminated with Salmonella until people have been sickened,” said Fred. “If chicken tests positive for Salmonella or any other dangerous pathogen, it should not be sold to consumers, and any product that is already in the market should be recalled.” Read Fred’s article, “Foster Farms Chicken Outbreak Highlights Need for Improved Regulation“.
People began to get sick on November 29, 2013. The last known illness onset date for the outbreak is December 5, 2013. Because some institutions may have frozen the chicken for future use, it is possible others may get sick. Anyone suspecting Salmonella food poisoning should see a doctor and then call our law firm if there is a positive diagnosis. Additional testing would need to be done to connect the illness with the outbreak.
