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.
Canada Closes Investigation into Dole Listeria Outbreak The Canadian investigation into the listeria outbreak associated with Dole’s Springfield, Ohio processing plant ended on March 17th, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. The outbreak led to more than a dozen confirmed outbreak cases of Listeria in the country. “Given that the source of the outbreak was identified and contaminated products have been recalled from the market, the outbreak investigation coordinating committee has been deactivated and the investigation is coming to a close,” the Agency said. Recapping the Canadian Investigation The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), an entity functions much like the…
The Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) announced that an additional eight cases of E. coli, bringing the total number of cases to 15. Oak Leaf Farm of Lebanon, Connecticut has been identified as a common source for 14 of the 15 cases. The age of those infected with the pathogen ranges from 1 to 44. Th median age of the outbreak cases is 6 years old, reflecting the petting zoo-like activities responsible for the infections. Five cases of the fifteen cases, or 33%, have been hospitalized. Of those cases, two have been released while three remain in hospital care. Two…
Garden of Life, LLC released a rebranded version of its RAW Meal Organic Shake & Meal last Thursday, March 24th. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified the RAW Meal Organic Shake & Meal product as the source of an outbreak of Salmonella Virchow. The outbreak strain of Salmonella infected 27 people by the time Garden of Life implemented its marketing strategy. The CDC considers it an ongoing outbreak and expects more cases to be confirmed before the event is declared over. Marketing Strategies After an Outbreak: the Chipotle Case Study In the aftermath of a food poisoning…
Native American Enterprises Issues Public Reponse to FDA, DOJ Allegations Following a civil complaint against Native American Enterprises LLC (NAE) filed in federal court by the U.S. Department of Justice, the company wants to let the public know that the company is open for business and plans to stay that way. While the company has yet to respond to the government’s civil complaint in court, it is striking back at the allegations in the court of public opinion. The company, which conducts business as Native American Foods, predicts a quick resolution, stating that it has already complied with the injunctive relief sought in the U.S.…
More Positive Salmonella Tests In Ongoing Pistachio Outbreak According to a report published by a Denver FOX affiliate, at least four members of the same Colorado family have been diagnosed with Salmonella after reportedly eating Wonderful brand pistachios. On March 9th, Wonderful Pistachios recalled multiple pistachio products marketed under the brand names Wonderful, Trader Joe’s, and Paramount Farms and distributed nationwide as well as in Canada, Mexico, and Peru. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially announced an ongoing outbreak of Salmonella Montevideo linked to consuming Salmonella-contaminated recalled pistachios the same day. As of March 7, 11 illnesses in nine states…
Recalled Sliders Pose a Risk to Human Health Smallbatch Pets, Inc. announced a voluntary recall of its frozen dog duckbatch sliders this morning due to potential Salmonella and Listeria contamination. The sliders pose a risk to humans from handling contaminated products. In addition, infected pets may be carriers of the bacteria – meaning the animal us infected with the bacteria but not showing any symptoms – and infect other animals and humans. Finally, the bacteria may be transmitted to humans via cross-contamination, or the transfer of harmful bacteria from other foods, cutting boards, utensils, etc., if they are not handled properly. Pet owners may…
Seven Infected with E. coli; Six Directly Connected to Oak Leaf Dairy Farm Oak Leaf Dairy Farm has temporarily closed its doors to the public after being tied to an ongoing outbreak of E. coli. Seven individuals, ranging from 2 to 25, have contracted the illness. Two of the cases subsequently developed the potentially lethal condition hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a fact confirmed both by the state department of health and Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Six of the seven outbreak patients had recently visited the goat farm, located in Lebanon, Connecticut. Connecticut Department of Health (DPH) Commissioner Raul Pino said in a statement…
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) engaged in a collaborative investigation of an E. coli O157 outbreak ultimately linked to alfalfa sprouts produced by Jack & The Green Sprouts, a River Falls, Wisconsin company. Both federal agencies issued separate announcements on March 25th declaring that this outbreak of E. coli is over. Recollections of a Recall: Jack & the Green Sprouts The first news of a potential outbreak came in the form of an August 24th press release from Minnesota Department of Health. The release announced that routine disease monitoring by the state department identified seven cases of…
Garden of Life, LLC RAW Products Linked to Nine New Cases of Salmonella Virchow Health officials have confirmed nine additional cases of the outbreak strain of Salmonella Virchow associated with consumption of RAW Meal Organic Shake & Meal products produced by Garden of Life, LLC, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 27. The most recent illness started on March 13, 2016. Nine new cases reported by state agencies were spread across eight states, five of which had not previously confirmed a case tied to the ongoing outbreak. Minnesota and Texas both reported one additional outbreak case. The new illnesses brought the total number of…
American Gourmet Initiates Voluntary Recall of Pistachio Products American Gourmet announced a recall of American Gourmet Roasted/Salted Pistachios due to potential Salmonella contamination. The The company’s third-party pistachio supplier instructed the company to initiate a voluntary recall. American Gourmet complied with the request, issuing a recall on March 24th. Retail stores in the San Diego, Riverside and San Bernadino counties – all located in California – received shipments of the recalled pistachios. The three recalled products can only be identified by the “Best By” dates located on the lower bottom panel of the packaging. The company is voluntarily recalling the following three products: 2.5…