Another death blamed on contaminated peanut butter

The death of a West Virginia woman may be linked to the salmonella-infested Peter Pan peanut butter, bringing the unofficial death toll to three from one of the nation's largest outbreaks of food poisoning.

Mary Halstead, 85, of Weston, WV, died Jan. 10 after becoming ill on Dec. 23, 2006, according to her son, Larry Halstead.

Salmonella is especially toxic to children, the elderly, pregnant women and individuals with chronic illnesses and compromised immune systems.

"Her doctors didn't ever test her for salmonella because nobody had heard anything about any of this at the time," Halstead said. In fact, "Her doctor said he couldn't figure out why the antibiotics they gave her weren't working."

Halstead said his mother became ill after eating a peanut butter sandwich, which was one of her favorite foods. During her hospitalization at Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital in Weston, she repeatedly asked the staff to serve her a peanut butter sandwich but they refused, saying peanut butter was not on their standard menu.

"So, dumb old me, I made her a peanut butter sandwich at home and brought it to her at the hospital, because it was just about the only thing she wanted to eat," Larry Halstead said. "In no time, she got just 100% worse." Halstead said his mother then became semi-comatose and died.

After his mother's death, Halstead heard the news of the salmonella infestation and looked at the jar of peanut butter he had used to make his mother's sandwich. It was Peter Pan peanut butter with the "2111" serial number.

"The death certificate says she died of congestive heart failure due to complications of pneumonia but she died of eating peanut butter," Halstead said. "She was in good health for her age until this all started."

Halstead said his mother "suffered something awful" during her last days and said he is considering taking legal action.

Two other deaths have been unofficially attributed to the tainted peanut butter.

Among those is an elderly Chicago area man, George Baldwin, who was said to be in relatively good health just before his recent death from complications of food poisoning, shortly after he ate a peanut butter sandwich.

"He puts the peanut butter on toast, eats the toast, in six hours he develops fever, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting -- all of which are signs of salmonella poisoning," Baldwin family attorney said.

A 76-year old Pennsylvania woman, Roberta Barkay of Philadelphia, died in January from food poisoning complications.  Similarly, her family members contend she too ate peanut butter shortly before her death. The family has hired an attorney who has filed suit against the peanut butter manufacturer, ConAgra.

More problems are surfacing for ConAgra as on March 2, 2007 the first indications that contaminated food from the Georgia plant may have been exported to other countries.

A Colombian man said he bought a jar of Peter Pan peanut butter on Feb. 10 because his five-year-old daughter was fond of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. She became ill with diarrhea and other symptoms last week and the family stopped feeding her peanut butter.

"To my surprise I was watching CNN news in English when I heard that the FDA was warning consumers about the salmonella in Peter Pan peanut butter," said the girl's father, Juan Sebastian Ordo Atez."  Additionally, the lid of the jar, which he still has in his possession has the number 21111 on the lid.

Sebastian Ordo Atez said he contacted the store where he purchased the peanut butter and was directed to the importer, which advised that any laboratory tests would be at his own expense.

"I think these people are not really interested in our health," he said in his complaint to the media.

China is recalling U.S. peanut butter, according to state-run media. China imported three batches of the two peanut butter brands in September and December of 2006 and January of 2007, totaling 742 cases, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

At least 156 cases have already been sold in Beijing, it said. Xinhua did not say if there had been any reports of people getting sick from the peanut butter.

The Food and Drug Administration reports that its inspectors have found salmonella samples at ConAgra's Georgia plant and, as the investigation of salmonella-tainted peanut butter expands, the recall has spread to ice cream manufacturers and a wholesale retailer of a peanut butter dessert toppings.

The FDA inspectors found salmonella samples at ConAgra's Sylvester, Georgia, plant, wherein the recalled Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter was made. At the same time, the agency said peanut butter from the contaminated plant was spread to at least one other plant, located in Tennessee.

Peanut butter was processed for ice cream and dessert toppings at the Humboldt, Tennessee plant.

The FDA says the fact that its inspectors found salmonella in the plant environment further suggests that the contamination likely took place before the product reached consumers.

In late February 2007, tests by several states identified salmonella in many open jars of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter recovered from consumers. In these instances, the salmonella found in the plant and in the open jars matched the outbreak strain recovered from consumers who became ill.

The following products were used by the affected businesses until Feb. 16, 2007 when the products were recalled:

• Sonic Brand Ready-To-Use Peanut Butter Topping in 6 lb. 10.5 oz cans.
• Carvel Peanut Butter Topping in 6 lb. 10 oz. cans.

The following Carvel products, purchased before Feb. 16, 2007 can be returned to a Carvel outlet for a refund:
• Chocolate Peanut Butter
• Peanut Butter Treasure
• Peanut Butter & Jelly
• Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Sundae Dasher
• Any other customized products containing the Peanut Butter Topping, including peanut butter flavored ice cream in ice cream cakes
• J. Hungerford Smith Peanut Butter Dessert Topping in 6 lb. 10 oz. cans. The topping is used by retail outlets and restaurants nationwide but is not available for direct purchase by the public, the FDA said.

Carvel's Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Sundae Dasher is not being recalled because of the peanut butter found in the Reese's Cups, but rather, because of the peanut butter topping applied to the sundae, Carvel spokeswoman Karen Gailey said.

ConsumerAffairs.Com has not received any related complaints on the above products.

You think you’ve become ill from eating peanut butter.  What should you do?

People who think they may have become ill from consuming peanut butter or any of the products listed above should consult a physician if they do not get better in a few days. If the illness affects small children, the elderly, pregnant women or those with compromised immune systems, seek immediate medical attention.

The FDA and other agencies have been advising consumers who have Peter Pan peanut butter or Great Value peanut butter with a product code beginning with 2111 to discard the jar and keep the lid.

However, attorneys advise that, if consumers were seriously harmed by their illness, they should seal the jar in a plastic bag and store it out of the reach of children or others in the household, so that it is available as evidence.

Although a few lawsuits seeking class action status have been filed, some experienced consumer attorneys have expressed doubt regarding the success of such actions.  Some attorneys feel that the majority of lawsuits will be individual actions because a class action suit may be difficult to certify.

ConAgra has publicly offered to repay the money consumers spent on the peanut butter. However, any attempt to recover medical costs and wages lost due to illness would require the individual victim to file a personal injury lawsuit. Such suits are usually not economically feasible unless consumers have suffered serious injury or death.

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