CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - J.M. Smucker has defeated a class action complaint filed over a Salmonella outbreak in its Jif peanut butter and brought by plaintiffs who did not allege they were made sick.
Ohio federal judge John R. Adams on April 10 dismissed the lawsuit brought by five individuals hoping to pursue a class action against the company. They are represented by The Baker Law Group and Poulin Willey Anastopoulo.
The plaintiffs sought compensation for buying the possibly tainted peanut butter, though Smucker offered refunds when announcing a recall of product traced to a Kentucky plant.
"While a generous reading of the complaint might suggest that Plaintiffs have alleged that they received products that were actually contaminated, it is clear from reading the totality of the complaint that no such allegation is made," Adams wrote.
"Rather, Plaintiffs rely upon the fact that they purchased products from the recalled lots... (T)he exposure to such a potential risk is insufficient to create Article III standing."
Adams rejected claims for emotional distress, annoyance and lost time. He relied largely on a previous decision over contaminated baby formula.
Smucker faced a wrongful death lawsuit over the outbreak that claimed peanut butter killed retired Florida judge Robert Forster, though that case was recently voluntarily dismissed.
Adams' order notes an FDA investigation revealed 21 illnesses but no deaths.