Several Companies Must Face Lawsuit Over Tainted Baby Food, Judge Rules

A U.S. judge said respective companies including Walmart, Beech-Nut and Gerber must look a nationwide suit claiming that toxic dense metals contaminated their babe food, causing encephalon and neurodevelopmental harm to children who ate it.

In a determination connected Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley said parents tin effort to beryllium that defective manufacturing, negligence and nonaccomplishment to pass astir much than 600 babe nutrient products caused their children to suffer autism spectrum upset and attraction shortage hyperactivity disorder.

Parents said immoderate defendants grounded to adhere to soul limits astir really overmuch arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury successful babe nutrient was safe, while others ne'er addressed nan issue.

Corley said this made it plausible to declare that immoderate babe nutrient was unsafe, if information criteria were not followed. The San Francisco-based judge besides said nary “ironclad rule” required nan parents to allege that toxicity crossed a peculiar threshold.

Beech-Nut is owned by Nestle, Gerber is owned by Switzerland’s Hero Group, and Walmart sold its babe nutrient nether its ain name.

Other brands successful nan lawsuit see Hain Celestial’s Earth’s Best Organics, Danone’s Happy Baby and Happy Tot, Sun-Maid Growers of California’s Plum Organics and Neptune Wellness Solutions’ Sprout Organic.

Lawyers for nan suspect companies did not instantly respond to requests for remark connected Thursday.

The companies person said their babe nutrient is safe. They besides based on that dense metals are people coming successful nan environment, and parents “cannot simply allege that detectable levels of dense metals make babe nutrient defective.”

R. Brent Wisner, a lawyer for nan plaintiffs, said he was pleased pinch nan decision.

“Selling babe nutrient pinch lead and arsenic is simply not OK, and pinch nan court’s ruling, we are 1 measurement person to holding these companies accountable for their decades of malfeasance,” Wisner said successful an email.

Parents sued aft a 2021 report by a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee connected economical and user argumentation said “dangerous” levels of dense metals successful immoderate babe nutrient could origin neurological damage.

Corley dismissed Campbell’s, which sold Plum Organics to Sun-Maid successful 2021, arsenic a defendant.

Amazon.com and its Whole Foods portion person besides been sued for trading Hain and Danone babe food.

The lawsuit is In re: Baby Food Products Liability Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 24-md-03101.

Topics Lawsuits Legislation