Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Tag: Texas

  • Texan Alleges Four Loko® Caused His Stroke

    A 33-year-old man has filed a personal injury lawsuit in a Texas federal court against companies that made and sold the Four Loko® that allegedly caused the stroke he had in October 2010 immediately after consuming two cans of the caffeinated alcohol beverage. Villa v. Phusion Projects, LLC, No. __ (S.D. Texas, filed mid-July 2010).…

  • Texas Officials Investigate Deaths Linked to Listeria-Tainted Celery

    The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has ordered a San Antonio produce plant to stop processing food and recall all products shipped since January 2010 because “laboratory tests of chopped celery from the plant indicated the presence of Listeria monocytogenes.” DSHS has prohibited Sangar Fresh Cut Produce from reopening without approval from the…

  • Fifth Circuit Limits Application of Packers and Stockyards Act

    A fractured Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has determined that claims alleging violation of the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921 must be supported by proof of injury, or likelihood of injury, to competition. Wheeler v. Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., No. 07-40651 (5th Cir., decided December 15, 2009). The issue arose from a complaint filed by…

  • Fifth Circuit Rejects Claim That Negligent Listeria Testing Caused False Positive Report

    In an unpublished opinion, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the dismissal of a biscuit maker’s claim that the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) negligent testing of its product for Listeria monocytogenes resulted in a false positive report that caused it to lose its contract with a company that supplied 7-Eleven convenience stores…

  • Healthy Menu Class Claims Filed in Texas Voluntarily Dismissed with Prejudice

    The named plaintiff who brought a putative class action for false advertising of healthy menu items against a company that operates chain restaurants across the United States has reportedly agreed to dismiss with prejudice the claims she filed in a federal court in Texas. Paskett v. Brinker Int’l Inc., No. 08-942 (N.D. Tex., dismissed April…

  • Court Refuses Remand in GM Rice Litigation

    A federal court in Missouri has determined that Texas plaintiffs alleging injury from the contamination of conventional rice crops with genetically modified (GM) rice had no reasonable basis to join non-diverse defendants and thus denied their motion to remand to state court. In re Genetically Modified Rice Litig., MDL No. 1811 (E.D. Mo., decided March…