Bankruptcy Court Paid $11,250,000 to E. coli Victims in Healthy Soy Nut Butter Outbreak

On January 10, 2019, a federal bankruptcy court in Illinois finished paying $11.25 million to 27 people who got sick by E. coli in the 2017 I.M. Healthy Soy Nut Butter outbreak. The court-appointed evaluator accessed the damages of the victims in this case at $69 million. Therefore, the victims got only a portion of their claims. The claims are a result of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 in 12 states in the spring of 2016. Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback evidence indicated that I.M. Healthy brand Soy Nut Butter manufactured by Dixie Dew was the likely source of this outbreak. Both I.M. Healthy and Dixie Dew filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. Soy nut butter made by Dixie Dew under the I.M. Healthy brand and sold by the SoyNut Butter Co. of Glenview, Illinois. It was recalled on March 4, 2017. The recalls were expanded twice to include more products, like granola. The product remained on some stores shelve many months after the recall. The amount paid is the insurance proceeds into the Bankruptcy Court in Chicago. Food safety attorney Bill Marler, who represents 20 victims in this outbreak, said that retailers like Amazon and Target, as well as suppliers Kehe and World Finer, have been sued. At the time of the recall, FDA did not release the names of the retailers of the recalled soy nut butter and granola products because it was deemed "confidential commercial information" exempt from disclosure. But since then, the FDA has shown more flexibility in disclosing such information. @ https://www.marlerblog.com/legal-cases/bankruptcy-court-expected-to-finalize-payment-of-11250000-to-e-coli-victims/
Bankruptcy Court expected to finalize payment of $11,250,000 to E. coli Victims | Marler Blog

In the Spring of 2016, the CDC reported that thirty-two people infected with the outbreak strains of E. coli O157:H7 were reported from 12 states – Arizona

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