The former head of a peanut-processing company recently had felony charges brought against him by the federal government. This was in connection with a deadly 2008-09 salmonella outbreak where hundreds of people got sick and nine died after eating peanut butter or other products that originated from his company.
The Justice Department alleges that Stewart Parnell, the former owner of Peanut Corp. of America, along with other employees, engaged in a multi-year conspiracy to cover-up that many of their products were tainted with salmonella.
The prosecutors say the company failed to notify its customers, including several national food companies, when the presence of salmonella was revealed by an independent lab.
Wire fraud, obstruction of justice and introducing adulterated food into the market are included in the 76-count indictment against Mr. Parnell and his ex-employees.
In 2009, the Food and Drug Administration found the company had not cleaned adequately or taken proper precautions to prevent food contamination. They also say the plant had roof leaks, poor ventilation and inadequate pest control.
Over 2,000 products were recalled and the company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in 2009.
“Termite” Terry says, “Everyone in the food industry should take stories like this seriously. Please don’t cut corners on pest control services. An effective pest management plan may have prevented many of these problems. And, when you consider this company’s enormous financial losses and the legal fees they face, an effective pest management program could have saved them a fortune!”
