Mora Lou Marshall – The 2006-2007 ConAgra Peanut Butter Salmonella Outbreak
In February 2007, the FDA announced a nationwide outbreak of Salmonella linked to ConAgra peanut butter produced at a plant in Sylvester, Georgia. Two types of peanut butter were linked to the outbreak: Peter Pan and Great Value. In their own investigation, ConAgra found that moisture leaking off the roof of the plant allowed for Salmonella to grow in the raw peanuts and peanut dust used in the peanut butter.
The CDC reported a total of 714 people with confirmed Salmonella related to the outbreak. 20% of those cases required hospitalization.
One of those cases was Mora Lou Marshall. Mora Lou loved Peter Pan peanut butter ever since her dentist recommended that she eat a tablespoon of peanut butter a day for vitamins and nutrients. Peter Pan was affordable, and she ate a tablespoon everyday between September 2006 and February 2007 until her family learned the source of her illness.
On Friday, December 29, 2006 Mora Lou started to experience nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Mora Lou’s symptoms required hospitalization and ultimately a life care facility. She went from being a southern woman full of life to living in a nursing home needing someone to lift her into her wheelchair and help her with her daily needs.
Marler Clark represented Mora Lou and one other individual in personal claims against ConAgra. The firm also filed a class action lawsuit against ConAgra on behalf of all those who were sick but did not require hospitalization. The firm resolved claims for over 1,000 people against ConAgra. You can read more about Salmonella lawsuits and litigation that stemmed from the ConAgra Salmonella outbreak on the Marler Clark Website.
