DeCosters get 3-month jail sentences in Salmonella case

Former Quality Egg LLC executives Jack DeCoster and Peter DeCoster have been given jail sentences in a case that tied Quality Egg to a multi-state Salmonella outbreak. 
Former egg industry executives Austin “Jack” DeCoster and Peter DeCoster have been sentenced to serve three months in jail after being found guilty on charges related to a multi-state Salmonella outbreak that occurred in 2010. The two men were sentenced April 13 in federal court in Sioux City, Iowa, on misdemeanor charges of introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.
Both Jack DeCoster, and his son Peter, remain free as they appeal their sentences, the Associated Press reported.
The conviction comes after a lengthy judicial process that followed a nationwide Salmonella outbreak that was traced back to the DeCosters’ former company, Quality Egg LLC. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) linked 1,939 illnesses to the Salmonella outbreak, but officials have argued that many more -- as many as 56,000 people -- may have become ill after the eggs entered commerce.
The Salmonella outbreak also led to the recall of more than 550 million eggs.
The two pleaded guilty on June 3, 2014 to the charges. The DeCosters’ attorney had argued that the former egg executives should only pay a fine and did not deserve jail time, as federal prosecutors said they had found no evidence that the DeCosters were aware they were selling tainted products. However, as corporate officers, the father and son could still be held legally responsible.
Both men were also fined $100,000, and Quality Egg paid a fine of $6.8 million.

DeCosters scheduled for February sentencing in Salmonella case

Former egg industry executive Austin “Jack” DeCoster and son Peter DeCoster are scheduled to be sentenced in February 2015 for their involvement in a multistate Salmonella outbreak that was traced to the DeCosters’ former company, Quality Egg LLC. The two pleaded guilty on June 3 to misdemeanor charges of introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.
The sentencing hearings are set to begin on February 9 at a courtroom in Sioux City, Iowa. The hearings could last as long as five days, according to a report in The State.
The charges stem from when Quality Egg sold eggs that caused thousands of people to become ill during the 2010 Salmonella outbreak. The outbreak also led to the recall of 550 million eggs.
The DeCosters could face up to one year in jail, but their attorney has argued that the two do not deserve jail time and should simply pay a fine and serve probation. Federal prosecutors said they found no evidence that the DeCosters were aware they were selling tainted products, but that as corporate officers, they can be held legally responsible.
Quality Egg also faces a fine after pleading guilty to bribing a federal inspector, selling misbranded food and introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.

Ex-egg producer Jack DeCoster shouldn’t go to jail, lawyer says

A defense attorney for former egg producer says Austin "Jack" DeCoster says his client should not go to jail when he is sentenced for his involvement in a 2010 Salmonella outbreak that caused thousands of people to become sick and led to the recall of 550 million eggs.
Attorney Frank Volpe filed a motion arguing that it would be unconstitutional for DeCoster to receive jail or home confinement, adding that the only appropriate sentence is a fine and probation, reported KCCI News.
DeCoster and his son, Peter, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce. They face up to a year in jail and could pay fines of up to $100,000.
The DeCosters' company, Quality Egg, pleaded guilty to bribing a federal inspector, selling misbranded food and introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.
Federal prosecutors have stated they found no evidence that the DeCosters were aware they were selling tainted products, but as corporate officers, they could be held legally responsible. Volpe argues Jack DeCoster  had no criminal intent.
Quality Egg has admitted that former manager Tony Wasmund and another employee bribed a USDA inspector, who is now deceased, on at least two occasions. The bribes were made in hopes of releasing pallets of eggs that had been retained for failing to meet federal standards. The company also admitted that with Wasmund's approval, Quality Egg often put false processing and expiration dates on labels to make eggs appear fresher than they really were.
Wasmund cooperated with prosecutors under a deal and earlier pleaded guilty to a bribery conspiracy.
Sentencing for the DeCosters been scheduled.

Quality Egg, DeCosters plead guilty in Salmonella case

Former egg industry executive Austin “Jack” DeCoster and son Peter DeCoster pleaded guilty June 3 to misdemeanor charges of introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce. Meanwhile, the DeCosters’ company, Quality Egg LLC, pleaded guilty to charges of bribing a USDA inspector, selling misbranded food and introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.
The charges stem from when the DeCosters sold eggs that were responsible for a nationwide Salmonella outbreak in 2010, which caused thousands of people to become ill. The outbreak also prompted the recall of 550 million eggs.
U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett has yet to decide the sentences for Jack and Peter DeCoster. They could face up to one year in jail, as well as pay fines of up to $100,000 a piece and additional restitution for victims, the Associated Press reported.
When entering its guilty pleas, Quality Egg agreed to pay a $6.8 million fine, which would be one of the largest fines ever related to food safety. It is up to Bennett to decide whether he will accept the agreement.
Federal prosecutors said they found no evidence that the DeCosters were aware they were selling tainted products, but that as corporate officers, they can be held legally responsible.
Quality Egg has admitted that former manager Tony Wasmund and another employee bribed a USDA inspector, who is now deceased, on at least two occasions. The bribes were made in hopes of releasing pallets of eggs that had been retained for failing to meet federal standards. The company also admitted that with Wasmund's approval, Quality Egg often put false processing and expiration dates on labels to make eggs appear fresher than they really were.
Wasmund cooperated with prosecutors under a deal and earlier pleaded guilty to a bribery conspiracy. He is expected to be sentenced in September.

Ex-egg producers Jack and Peter DeCoster face federal charges

Former egg industry executive Austin “Jack” DeCoster and his son Peter DeCoster were charged in a federal court May 21 with selling the eggs responsible for a 2010 Salmonella outbreak that caused thousands of people to become ill and led to the recall of 550 million eggs. The DeCosters were charged with introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce, a misdemeanor that carries a minimum sentence of one year in jail.
Quality Egg LLC, which includes the Decosters' former network of farms in Iowa, was charged with introducing misbranded food into interstate commerce for selling products from 2006 to 2010 with labels that "made the eggs appear to be not as old as they actually were." The company is also charged with bribing a public official for an alleged 2010 payment to influence a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector to approve shell eggs that had been held back for failing to meet federal standards, the Associated Press reported. Both are felonies.
The DeCosters are expected to plead guilty at June 3 hearings.
Jack DeCoster had previously been involved in a lawsuit with the plaintiffs accusing him of discriminating against workers based off of age, race and national origin. That suit was settled in October 2013, with the terms of the settlement not being released.

Possible Salmonella contamination leads to egg recall

Sixdog Investments LLC is voluntarily recalling some cases of its certified organic eggs, because of the potential they are contaminated with Salmonella. This voluntary field action was initiated because of routine testing results, and not because of illness to date from consumption.
The recalled eggs were distributed in Colorado, although some eggs may have gone to Idaho, Kansas, New Mexico and Utah through retail outlets.
The eggs are packed in dozen and half-dozen packages. The products in question will have a packing date of 93, 94, 97, or 98; an expiration date of “051814,” “051914,” “052214” or “052314”; they will also include a location code of 1 or 3. This information is on the package, located on a white sticker on the end of each carton.
The company is confident that any and all products sent out with any other packing codes or expiration dates are fully safe for consumption.
Routine testing, initiated by Sixdog Investments, revealed that the finished products from certain barns could potentially contain the bacteria, according to a news release from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The company immediately ceased production in these areas, and began taking action to rectify the situation.
Consumers who have purchased these Sixdog Investment eggs may return the eggs to the place of purchase for a full refund.

USDA issues public health alert for Nutriom processed egg products

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued a public health alert because Nutriom LLC declined to expand its egg product recall. The USDA said the company has not consented to the USDA's request that it recall an additional 118,541 pounds of processed egg products.
In a statement, the USDA said, "FSIS intends to take appropriate action to remove the products from commerce."
According to USDA, Nutriom's February 15, recall of 226,710 pounds of processed egg products, was because the company allegedly recorded false laboratory results. The company allegedly produced negative laboratory results for Salmonella when the results were actually positive, or reported that sampling had occurred when, in fact, no microbial testing was performed. FSIS is requesting that the company include additional products in the recall, but it has declined.
The agency has said that since the egg products were not produced in accordance with FSIS requirements, USDA considers them to be unfit for human consumption.
The original documentation problem was discovered by Washington State Laboratories in response to a billing inquiry by Nutriom. The laboratory then notified FSIS personnel of the discrepancies in laboratory results. FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses due to consumption of these products.

Quality Egg, Hillandale Farms reach settlement with distributor over Salmonella recalls

Quality Egg and Hillandale Farms have reached a settlement with NuCal Foods Inc., a California distributor that lost profits from a 2010 Salmonella outbreak blamed on the two egg producers. Financial terms were not immediately disclosed.
Quality Egg was based in Galt, Iowa, and owned by Jack DeCoster. Hillandale Farms had ties to DeCoster's operations, processing and marketing shell eggs from some Quality Egg plants, according to reports.
The companies issued recalls covering 550 million eggs in 2010, after scientists traced illnesses back to their farms in northern Iowa. As many as 62,000 people became ill in the outbreak.
Ripon, Calif.-based NuCal sued the companies and DeCoster, contending they were aware their farms were contaminated with Salmonella but continued marketing their eggs as safe.
NuCal said it bought millions of eggs in 2010 from the Iowa egg producers, then distributed those eggs to retail customers. After the companies announced the recalls in August 2010, NuCal had to recall the eggs it bought, which led to demands for refunds and lawsuits from those who fell sick. The outbreak also led to a reduced demand for eggs, which hurt NuCal's sales, the lawsuit contended.
Hillandale Farms had also filed counterclaims against DeCoster, blaming his operations for the outbreak. 

Iowa egg producer warned by FDA over Salmonella discovery

Iowa egg producer Centrum Valley Farms was sent a warning letter on August 14 by the Food and Drug Administration after a routine government safety inspection discovered Salmonella Heidelberg in two of the company's barns in May. Centrum Valley said it diverted a number of eggs from the consumer market "in the interest of egg safety" and withheld them until they tested negative for the bacteria four times and were eventually approved for sale by the FDA.
The plant is already under strict oversight because it was one of several in northern Iowa implicated in the 2010 Salmonella outbreak, which led to the recall of more than 500 million eggs nationwide and sickened roughly 2,000 customers. "SH has caused several egg-associated outbreaks resulting in human illness and at times death," said the FDA in its letter. "Given this body of evidence, the FDA considers SH within a poultry house environment to be a public health threat. We acknowledge that you have been working with the FDA to address this situation."
Centrum Valley is in the process of responding to the FDA's findings, which also include deficiencies in the company's testing for Salmonella and its Salmonella prevention plan. "Providing safe, high-quality eggs to Centrum Valley Farms customers is our obligation," said Chief Operating Officer Steve Boomsma. "We have already taken corrective actions." The FDA gave Centrum Valley 15 working days to issue a response outlining "specific things you have done or plan to do to correct these violations and prevent their recurrence." 

FDA warns Ohio Fresh egg producer

According to public records, the Cincinnati District Office of the Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning letter to the management of Ohio Fresh Eggs LLC dated February 25, 2011. The action was taken as a result of failure by the producer to divert eggs to pasteurization following consecutive SE positive egg assays.
The eggs in question were recalled with minimal publicity and with no evidence of adverse effects among consumers. In addition, this producer was cited for failure to initiate egg assays following a positive environmental sample.
It is noted that Ohio Fresh Eggs LLC is ultimately controlled by Jack Austin DeCoster who was involved in the August 2010 SE egg recall from his farms in Iowa, which resulted in extensive losses estimated to be in excess of $100 million to the U.S. shell-egg industry.
The documented deviations from required action in the event of an environmental positive must be regarded in a serious light by both the regulatory authorities and the industry. Any negligence or unscrupulous practice which may compromise safety has the potential to degrade the image of our product. The actions of a minority could easily invalidate progress made by the American Egg Board in promoting consumption. It must be remembered that the American Egg Board is funded through a check-off program to which all producers contribute. The collective responsibility of all stakeholders in egg production is self-evident.

Salmonella regulations proposed for Iowa egg producers

Outgoing Governor Chet Culver unveiled a state initiate to suppress salmonella infection in egg-producing flocks. Presumably referring to Salmonella enteritidis infection, regulations will appear to duplicate the FDA Final Rule with respect to all farms over 3,000 hens.
It is proposed that the Iowa Department and Appeals would require notification of any isolation of presumably SE derived from environmental swabs or eggs. The proposed legislation is in response to the adverse publicity directed to Iowa following the August 2010 recall.
The bill requires all farms irrespective of size to operate in accordance with a written SE prevention plan and to be subject to inspection by state officials.
It is significant that the Iowa Egg Council was not consulted before release of the proposal. There is doubt however that the proposed regulations will be enacted into law by the incoming legislature, which is divided between the two major parties.

FDA implicates Salmonella Heidelberg in egg recall

In the concurrence letter from the Food and Drug Administration addressed to Jack DeCoster in early December, the FDA communication makes mention of Salmonella Heidelberg in the required program of suppressing Salmonella enteritidis, which is the principal focus of the Final Rule. Mention of other than a Group D Salmonella creates concern.
Although S. Heidelberg along with many other Salmonella serotype is potentially pathogenic to consumers, there is no evidence that serotypes other than SE can be transmitted by the vertical route. Contamination of the surface of shells with Group B and Group C Salmonella should be inactivated by effective washing in an efficient and well-managed plant. It is understood from industry sources that FDA does not intend to initiate a program requiring either depletion or diversion in the event of detecting Salmonella Heidelberg.
The present action relates specifically to Wright County Eggs where S. Heidelberg was detected in the process of extensive environmental sampling. There is concern that this aspect of the Wright County Egg investigation has created a precedent since FDA has the authority to investigate outbreaks of any food-borne disease. In the event of a traceback due to a non-Type D Salmonella it is presumed that appropriate remedial action will be required or mandated.

Dioxin-tainted eggs exported to UK pose no health risk

Fourteen tons of dioxin-tainted liquid eggs from Germany exported to the United Kingdom are not thought to pose a health risk, according to officials.
The eggs were used in such end products as cakes and quiches, according to the Food Standards Agency.
At least 136,000 potentially contaminated eggs were already known to have been shipped to the Netherlands in early December, but the investigation to determine just how far the contamination might have spread is ongoing, according to German Minister of Agriculture and Consumer Protection Ilse Aigner. UK authorities have launched their own effort, attempting to follow the paths of items produced with the tainted eggs. "These eggs were mixed with other non-contaminated eggs to make pasteurized liquid egg," said an FSA representative. "This pasteurized liquid egg has been distributed to the UK. The mixing of the eggs will have diluted the levels of dioxins and they are not thought to be a risk to health. The FSA is currently liaising with the industry and will provide further updates as information becomes available."
The dioxin contamination comes from tainted animal feed supplied by Harles & Jentzsch GmbH. The company has said that it was "careless" in assuming a certain mixed fatty acid, normally used for technical industrial uses such as making lubricants and biofuels, would be suitable for manufacture of animal feed. Up to 3,000 metric tons of the feed was shipped to farmers in eight German states, said Holger Eichele, a spokesman for Aigner.
Over 4,700 farms have been affected, leading the German Farmers' Association to call for compensation. The farms have been shut down as a precaution and will not be allowed to make any deliveries until they have been checked and found clear of contamination. The majority of the farms are pig properties in Lower Saxony. Born said that while it is too soon to produce an exact monetary figure, the association is expecting the total to be "in the millions" of euros.

Dioxin contamination in German eggs, pork result of technical fats in feed

After the recent discovery of excessive amounts of dioxin in its products and animal feeds, forcing more than 1,000 farms producing eggs, poultry and pork in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, to halt sales, Harles & Jentzsch GmbH has said it was "careless" in assuming a certain mixed fatty acid would be "suitable for manufacture of animal feed."
The company said that for years it has manufactured using technical fats, which are typically used for making lubricants and biofuels and in cosmetics. A total of 2,700 metric tons of contaminated animal feed was shipped to farmers in eight German states, with 90% ending up in Lower Saxony, said Holger Eichele, a spokesman for German Minister of Agriculture and Consumer Protection Ilse Aigner.
Food retailers are currently testing their products to see if any items return positive for dioxin, as more than 100,000 contaminated eggs are thought to have been shipped to various shops. Agriculture officials are also conducting inspections to determine which farms have been supplied with the hazardous feed. Authorities are investigating to determine whether a criminal offense has been committed.

Wright County Egg to resume shipments of shell eggs after four-month ban

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced that Wright County Egg may resume shipping shell eggs to consumers after a four-month ban related to the August recall of over half a billion shell eggs originating from Wright and Hillandale Farms.
The Salmonella enteritidis-focused recall caused an estimated 1,470 cases of illness. "During the outbreak, I said that the FDA would not agree to the sale of eggs to consumers from Wright County Egg until we had confidence that they could be shipped and consumed safely," said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D. "After four months of intensive work by the company and oversight, testing and inspections by the FDA, I am satisfied that time has come."
The company has taken several corrective measures to address issues that were discovered by the FDA in August. Chicken housing has been cleaned, sanitized and tested; contaminated pullets have been replaced with SE-negative pullets vaccinated against SE; the severe rodent problem has been eliminated and a monitoring system has been put in place; and feed supplies have been made safer through cleaning the feed mill, correcting structural defects, eliminating egg shells, meat and bone meal from the feed and testing the feed for SE. FDA inspections were conducted in October and November verifying the changes.

Hillandale’s Iowa facility to resume shipping eggs

The Food and Drug Administration informed Hillandale Farms that the Hampton, Iowa, facility could resume shipping table eggs from specific houses based on corrective action and negative environmental assays. Based on positive assays from four houses, egg pool testing will continue before a decision is made concerning the marketability of product from these flocks. Two houses are undergoing decontamination following depletion. In a letter dated October 15, the FDA commented that corrective action to remedy “objectionable conditions noted during the August inspection have been resolved.”
In a separate letter to Mr. Jack Austin DeCoster, the FDA noted that the biosecurity problems and deviations from acceptable standards, as documented during previous inspections, have not been rectified and the company was warned to “take prompt and aggressive action to eliminate salmonella contamination and defects in biosecurity.”
The FDA warned that failure to take prompt action would result in regulatory penalties including seizure of product and injunctions. The warning letter cited deviations from regulations concerning safety of shell eggs with specific reference to rodent control and biosecurity. The recipient of the FDA letter was advised to respond indicating “prompt and aggressive action” to the district director.

US egg recall should act as warning to others

The recall of over 500 million eggs in the U.S. due to salmonella outbreaks should act as a warning to producers worldwide not to drop their guard, said Klaus Torborg of Lohmann Animal Health.
He continued that there were countries that had successfully tackled salmonella, noting that the UK had the lowest levels of salmonella in laying hens of any major egg-producing country.
In 2004/05, when an EU baseline study was conducted, the prevalence of Salmonella enteriditis and Salmonella tphimurium in UK laying hens was 7.9%. By 2008, the most recent year for which figures are available, this had dropped to 1%.
Torborg added that it was not surprising that the EU had used the UK model for its control program.

Food safety may fall through audit cracks, system questioned

Questions are being raised in the direction of food safety audits after Congress said Wright County Egg, the company at the head of America's largest egg recall in history, received a "superior" audit rating just two months before 1,600 people were sickened with salmonella-tainted eggs from the company.
Regulations from various organizations, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), provide oversight, but actual audits are often conducted by third parties who the auditees themselves pay for. "If a company is purchasing an audit, they may be unwilling to pay for a bad result and unwilling to rehire an audit company that produces the negative result," said Caroline Smith DeWaal, food safety director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
The industry, said Smith DeWaal, currently relies largely on voluntary standards that have been created by industry groups.

Owners involved in egg recall go before House subcommittee

Austin DeCoster, owner of Wright County Egg, and Orland Bethel, president of Hillandale Farms, went before a House subcommittee on Wednesday to answer questions regarding their companies' roles in the August 2010 national egg recall enacted after a salmonella outbreak.
DeCoster apologized, saying he was "horrified" that anyone may have been sickened by his company's eggs. Duane Mangskau, a production representative for Hillandale Farms, said the recall has forced them "to take a hard look at our operations." More than 1,600 illnesses have been linked to the recall. The companies said that the source of the salmonella was likely an ingredient sold to them from an outside supplier. The Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are heading up the ongoing investigation.

Plenty of blame to be shared in egg recall

The significance of the 2010 egg recall is now becoming apparent. The short-term impact relates to an acute drop in consumption with a correspondingly precipitous decline in the average August Urner Barry price from 113 cents per dozen to the mid-70s by the second week in September. Contrast this value with a projected 117 cents for the month. Assuming that the generic shell-egg segment of the industry collectively experienced a decline of 40 cents per dozen, the loss in revenue for September alone would amount to $125 million assuming 162 million hens* with a 75% hen-to-pack yield.
The alleged circumstances, deficiencies and deviations from what could be regarded as prudent standards of operation by the management and ownership of the affected complexes and their affiliates are being emblazoned across newspapers in the U.S. fuelling concern over the safety of our product. Premature releases of preliminary findings by the FDA are adding to the rejection of shell eggs by domestic and food service users.
There is plenty of blame to go around. To name but a few:

• The owner and management of the implicated complexes who allegedly operated with complete disregard for accepted standards of prevention and detection of SE;
• The UEP and its directors for promoting its 5-Star Total Quality Assurance Food Safety Program, which was patently inferior to detect SE compared to the long-standing California and Pennsylvania EQAPs and the program initiated by the major producer of nationally distributed shell eggs;
• The UEP for not acting forcefully and expeditiously to publically disassociate its constituency of responsible producers representing 97% of production capacity from the alleged and widely publicized practices on the affected complexes;
• The UEP and its public relations advisors for mounting a lackluster campaign, which incorporated a blame-the-victim approach contrary to accepted principles of crisis control;
• The AEB for not acting quickly and authoritatively, applying its extensive resources to dispel concern among consumers in the face of negative publicity;
• The FMI in mandating an SQF program, which omitted the basic requirement that certified plants only pack eggs from flocks demonstrated to be free of SE, applying a comprehensive monitoring protocol;
• Purchasers of nest-run eggs from the affected complexes who repacked and distributed product without enquiring as to the SE status of supply flocks;
• The major chains and brokers who have imposed pressure on producers to supply eggs at the lowest cost, depriving the industry of the margins which would allow investment in effective biosecurity, SE vaccination, rodent control and monitoring; and
• The federal authorities for not coordinating their resources to provide the industry, initially with guidance and then successively comprehensive suppression and eradication programs. What have the USDA-AMS, USDA-ARS, USDA-FSIS or the FDA and their paymasters (Congress) contributed to preventing the SE crisis during the last two decades?

Am I bitter? Yes. Disappointed? Yes. A lot of good, honest and hardworking people, many of whom are friends and associates, will suffer from the acts of omission and commission, which contributed to the current situation. All that I can hope is that reason will prevail and that we will collectively develop a new attitude toward production of a quality product with inherent nutritional attributes for the benefit of our consumers and stakeholders.
Contrary opinions and rebuttals are welcome.
Inappropriate response to recall 
More from Dr. Shane about the blame-the-victim approach that caused backlash.

*(290 million hens in production less specialty and breaking flocks)