Author: Tony Coveny, Ph.D
Tony Coveny, Ph.D
Tony Coveny, has been practicing infectious disease litigation exclusively for more than a decade, settling cases against major agro-industrial companies, international suppliers, and domestic distributors and manufacturers. Tony Coveny, alongside Ron Simon, has tried cases against restaurants, distributors, national manufacturers, and foreign corporations to recover damages against their clients. From the main office in Houston, which he manages, he speaks to potential and current clients on a daily basis.
The US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued an expansion of a previous recall by Silver Springs Farms, Inc. The original release included 740 pounds of ground beef products. This expanded recall adds an additional 7,230 pounds of ground beef patties and burgers, along with an undetermined amount of “various sandwich steak products.” The recall results from potential E. coli O157:H7 contamination. According to the Class I Recall announcement issued by FSIS, “Silver Springs Farms, Inc., a Harleysville, Pa. establishment is recalling approximately 7,970 pounds of ground beef and burger products, as well as an…
Good Earth Egg Company, LLC is recalling all of its shell eggs due to potential Salmonella contamination. The recall comes after eight people tested positive for the same strain of the bacteria. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified eight cases of Salmonella Oranienburg infections matching the outbreak strain across three states. Two people required hospitalization due to the severity of their illnesses. Company Recalls All Shell Eggs Due to Salmonella Threat On October 3rd, Good Earth Egg Company recalled all of its shell eggs due to potential Salmonella contamination. This includes all shell eggs produced by the company…
Last week, Blue Bell Creameries announced a recall of select flavors of ice cream made at the company’s Sylacauga, Alabama plant due to potential listeria contamination. The chocolate chip cookie dough used in the ice cream came from a third-party supplier, Aspen Hills, Inc. The Brenham-based ice cream company “blamed the listeria on . . . an Iowa supplier” which said that “no other customer has complained about listeria and said its tests found the product listeria free when it shipped out.” Blue Bell Blames Cookie Dough Supplier for Listeria-Related Ice Cream Recall Blue Bell identified a potential problem through intensified internal testing and notified Aspen…
“What began as a contaminated batch of frozen strawberries has now snowballed into a trade war with the US, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Kenya.” -Daily News Egypt Over 100 Infected with Hepatitis A by Egyptian Strawberries in Tropical Smoothie Cafe Outbreak At this point, most consumers know about the outbreak of Hepatitis A linked to Tropical Smoothie Cafe drinks made with frozen strawberries. The outbreak involves a total of 129 cases reported in eight states. Virginia, the epicenter of the outbreak, confirmed 104 cases as of September 25th. Tropical Smoothie Cafe imported the source of the outbreak -…
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced a recall of 2,100 pounds of boneless beef trim products late Tuesday evening. The recall affects products from Caviness Beef Packers, an establishment based in Hereford, Texas, and results from concerns of E. coli O103 contamination. More Than A Ton of Beef Products Recalled by Caviness Beef Packers Complicating the situation, Caviness Beef Packers sold the 2,100 pound bin of “boneless beef trim 84L” to another establishment. That establishment, not named in the recall notice, then further processed the beef trim, originally produced on September 14th, into…
Apple Tree Goat Dairy initiated a recall of four varieties of goat cheese due to potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. Listeria is a biological organism that causes serious and potentially fatal infections in immunocompromised individuals, the frail or elderly, and young children. The bacteria Listeria also poses unique threats to pregnant women, who are substantially more likely to contract the disease. Threat Detection: Proactive Surveillance a Continued Success Apple Tree Goat Dairy distributed the recalled goat cheese – described in detail below – in Washington DC, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Distribution of the cheeses occurred through Lancaster co-op. The recall,…
News of another outbreak – not linked to smoothies – emerged in the Eastern United States this weekend. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a press release early this afternoon regarding an ongoing outbreak of E. coli O157:H7. The release identifies beef, veal, and bison products from Adams Farm Slaughterhouse, LLC as the source of the outbreak. Seven Victims Identified in Eight Day Interagency Investigation On September 16th, FSIS received notification of an investigation of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses. A collaborative effort by the Connecticut Department of Public Health, the Massachusetts Department of…
Just as soon as you think everything’s back to normal, Blue Bell Ice Cream hits you square in the back of the head with yet another big, gooey ball of listeria (“at least it didn’t hit me square in the mouth,” you think), sending you unhappily spiraling back into ice cream paranoia. Blue Bell Recalls Two Flavors of Ice Cream Citing Fears of Listeria Contamination And that is just what happened this Wednesday evening, when the creamery announced a recall of select ice cream produced at the company’s Sylacauga, Alabama plant using chocolate chip cookie dough from Aspen Hills, Inc., a third-party supplier based in…
Ron Simon & Associates Files Hepatitis A Suit Against Tropical Smoothie Cafe Today the food poisoning law firm of Ron Simon & Associates filed a lawsuit in Prince William County, Virginia, on behalf of Robert Daly, a victim of the hepatitis A outbreak linked to Tropical Smoothie Cafe. The lawsuit was filed in Virginia in Prince William County, where Robert resides. The victim is Robert Daly. Robert regularly drank smoothies from Tropical Smoothie Cafe as part of his commitment to leading a healthy lifestyle. Unbeknownst to him, one of his smoothies contained strawberries imported from Egypt that were contaminated with hepatitis A virus. In late August, Robert began to…
Kellogg Company initiated a recall of approximately 10,000 cases of Kellogg’s Eggo Nutri-Grain Whole Wheat Waffles late Monday evening. The company made the decision to recall the product due to potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. According to Kellogg Company, “no other Eggo products are impacted by this recall.” Kellogg Recalls Eggo Waffles Distributed to 25 States Routine tests conducted by the company identified the potential contamination and resulted in recall of the waffles. According to a press release from Kellogg Company, “as soon as the company learned of a potential concern, it moved quickly to identify any foods that might be impacted…