The lawsuit was filed in Oregon Federal District court in Portland by Seattle-based food safety law firm Marler Clark.
According to the complaint, the child consumed ground turkey produced and distributed by Cargill as part of a spaghetti and meatballs dinner her father prepared in early June.
By 10 June, she had developed severe diarrhoea and a very high fever. By 15 June, it was determined that the antibiotic-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg had entered the child’s bloodstream, and she was rushed to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, where she was treated for seven days.
The family’s attorney, Bill Marler, says Cargill owes it to the family to take responsibility for its actions. He said: “Most of us cannot fathom the helplessness of watching as a 10-month-old fights it out with a life-threatening illness.
“No one expects to celebrate their daughter’s first birthday by blowing out the candles and wishing for no long-lasting effects of salmonella.”
Marler has litigated numerous food-borne illness cases against Cargill. Marler resolved the case of Stephanie Smith, a Minnesota woman who became paralysed after eating an E. coli-contaminated Cargill hamburger in 2007.
Source: Marler Clark
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