Tag: diacetyl
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Insurer Seeks Declaration in Coverage Dispute over Diacetyl Litigation
Arch Specialty Insurance Co. has filed a declaratory judgment action in a New York state court against a company identified as a distributor of food product ingredients, including the butter-flavoring chemical diacetyl. Arch Specialty Ins. Co. v. Citrus & Allied Essences, Ltd., No. 652670/2011 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., N.Y. County, filed September 29, 2011). The insurance…
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Popcorn Lung Alleged Against Diacetyl Makers and Sellers
A number of former employees of an animal-food flavoring maker have sued companies that make or sell the butter-flavoring chemical diacetyl, alleging that occupational exposure caused them to contract a debilitating lung disease known as bronchiolitis obliterans (or popcorn lung). Huerta v. Aldrich Chem. Co., Inc., No. 11-9461 (Ill. Cir. Ct., Cook Cty., filed September…
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NIOSH Seeks Comments on Criteria for Setting Occupational Diacetyl Exposure Limit
The National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH) will hold a public meeting August 26, 2011, to solicit public input on a draft document titled “Criteria for a Recommended Standard: Occupational Exposure to Diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione.” Diacetyl is a butter-flavoring chemical widely used in baked goods and microwave popcorn. Numerous lawsuits have been filed…
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Court Resolves Insurance Coverage Issues for Diacetyl Defendants
A New York state court has determined that a company which made the butter flavoring chemical at issue in workplace exposure lawsuits succeeded to a predecessor’s insurance coverage rights. Int’l Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. v. St. Paul Prot. Ins. Co., No. 601723/08 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., decided April 11, 2011). Finding that a de facto merger…
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Insurer Claims Policy Does Not Cover Diacetyl Claim Damages
An insurer that issued commercial umbrella policies to a company that makes flavorings ingredients, including those used in butter-flavored microwave popcorn, is seeking a declaration that it has no obligation under those policies to defend or indemnify the company in lawsuits alleging respiratory injury from exposure to diacetyl. Continental Cas. Co. v. Citrus & Allied…
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OSHA Adds Diacetyl Substitutes to National Emphasis Program Document
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has revised its “National Emphasis Program (NEP) on Microwave Popcorn Processing Plants,” to add several diacetyl substitutes to its policies and procedures for minimizing or eliminating worker exposures “to the hazards associated with microwave popcorn manufacturing.” Effective January 18, 2011, the NEP now includes 2,3-pentanedione, 2,3-hexanedione, 2,3-heptanedione, and…
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Study Purportedly Links Diacetyl to Bronchiolitis Obliterans
A recent study has proposed a model linking the butter flavoring known as diacetyl to bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome, a lung disease diagnosed in microwave popcorn plant workers. James Mathews, et al., “Reaction of the Butter Flavorant Diacetyl (2,3-Butanedione) with N-α Acetylarginine: A Model for Epitope Formation with Pulmonary Proteins in the Etiology of Obliterative Bronchiolitis,”…
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Court Approves $50 Million Settlement of Claims Against Bankrupt Diacetyl Defendant
A New York bankruptcy court will reportedly allow Chemtura Corp. to resolve 90 percent of the respiratory disease claims pending against it for $50 million, or one-third of the $150 million sought by factory workers allegedly exposed to the popcorn-flavoring ingredient diacetyl. In re: Chemtura Corp., No. 09-11233 (S.D.N.Y., settlement approved August 23, 2010). Responding…