On February 17, 2022, the complaint for this class action alleges, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told consumers not to buy or use infant formulas made at a certain Sturgis, Michigan facility. The facility is owned by Abbott Laboratories, which does business as Abbott Nutrition and makes the popular baby formulas Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare. The complaint alleges that certain lots of these formulas have been found to contain Cronobacter and Salmonella bacteria.
Two classes have been proposed for this action:
- The Nationwide Class is all persons who, within the applicable statutes of limitations, bought a recalled product made by Abbott Laboratories.
- The Iowa Class is all persons who, within the applicable statutes of limitations, bought a recalled product made by Abbott Laboratories. (It is unclear whether the Iowa reference is to people living in Iowa or people who bought the products at issue in Iowa.)
The infant formulas are distributed throughout the country and around the world. The complaint alleges that four infants were hospitalized and one died after consuming the formulas at issue in this case. The earliest hospitalization occurred on September 6, 2021, the complaint claims, and the four cases took place in three states, Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas.
The complaint alleges that the products may contain Cronobacter sakazakii or Salmonella Newport bacteria which can cause serious health problems, including sepsis, meningitis, poor feeding, irritability, fever, jaundice, grunting breaths, abnormal movements, and bowel damage.
According to the complaint, the FDA did an on-site inspection of Abbott’s Sturgis facility and found “several positive Cronobacter results from environmental samples” as well as “adverse inspectional observations[.]” They also looked at internal records which showed environmental contamination with Cronobacter sakazakii bacteria and which indicated that products had previously been destroyed at the facility because of the presence of the Cronobacter bacteria.
On February 18, 2020, Abbott announced a recall of certain lots of the Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare products, identified by digits, codes, and/or dates on the packaging. The complaint alleges, “Despite the recall, Abbott is not crediting or replacing affected Recalled Products, which many parents and caretakers rely on daily to feed and care for their children.” The only option for those who paid for recalled formula is to get rid of it and pay more money for new formula.
Among the counts are breaches of the implied warranties of usability and merchantability, negligent failure to warn, negligent recall, and unjust enrichment.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Abbott Nutrition Cronobacter and Salmonella Bacteria in Formula Complaint
March 9, 2022
On February 17, 2022, the complaint for this class action alleges, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told consumers not to buy or use infant formulas made at a certain Sturgis, Michigan facility. The facility is owned by Abbott Laboratories, which does business as Abbott Nutrition and makes the popular baby formulas Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare. The complaint alleges that certain lots of these formulas have been found to contain Cronobacter and Salmonella bacteria.
Abbott Nutrition Cronobacter and Salmonella Bacteria in Formula ComplaintCase Event History
Abbott Nutrition Cronobacter and Salmonella Bacteria in Formula Complaint
March 9, 2022
On February 17, 2022, the complaint for this class action alleges, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told consumers not to buy or use infant formulas made at a certain Sturgis, Michigan facility. The facility is owned by Abbott Laboratories, which does business as Abbott Nutrition and makes the popular baby formulas Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare. The complaint alleges that certain lots of these formulas have been found to contain Cronobacter and Salmonella bacteria.
Abbott Nutrition Cronobacter and Salmonella Bacteria in Formula Complaint