Maker of Tainted Dog Food to Pay $3.1M
From the AP
Maker of Tainted Dog Food to Pay $3.1M
By MEG KINNARD
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A company that made contaminated pet food that killed dozens of dogs nationwide will pay $3.1 million in a settlement with pet owners, an attorney said Friday.
The pet food, which contained a mold called aflatoxin, was produced at Diamond Pet Foods’ plant in South Carolina. The company will set up a fund to reimburse pet owners for the loss of their dog, veterinarian bills and the cost of any unreturned contaminated food, said attorney Jim Andrews, who represented a Knoxville, Tenn., family that sued the company.
Diamond Pet Foods, based in Meta, Mo., acknowledged that workers at its Gaston, S.C., plant failed to follow internal testing procedures to ensure its products were safe. The company made the acknowledgment after the Food and Drug Administration released a report showing the company has no record of test results for 12 shipments of corn in 2005, when grain tainted with the deadly fungus slipped into the plant.
The company contends it did nothing illegal, according to the settlement.
An attorney for the company said Diamond would cooperate with claimants.
“Diamond’s taken care of its customers since the very first day that they found out about this, and I think the settlement that we’ve entered into continues to do that,” lawyer Jeffrey Thompson said from his office in Knoxville, Tenn.
Aflatoxin, a naturally occurring chemical that comes from a fungus sometimes found on corn and in other crops, can cause severe liver damage.
The contaminated pet food was sold in 23 states. Diamond recalled about 20 varieties of dog and cat food when a New York veterinarian said in December 2005 that she had linked a dog’s death to the company’s food. An estimated 350,000 bags of dog food were recalled, according to the settlement.
Both attorneys said Friday they did not know how many people were expected to file claims against the company. According to the settlement agreement, Diamond and its insurance company have already settled about 1,200 related claims for compensation ranging from the price of recalled food to veterinary bills and pet deaths.
The settlement states that owners of a dog that died as a result of eating the contaminated food could receive as much as $1,000. Owners could also be compensated with as much as $1,000 for testing and treatment for aflatoxin poisoning, as well as payment for as many as two bags of pet food.
Andrews and other attorneys representing the claimants will receive a fee of $465,000, which will be paid out from the $3.1 million, according to the settlement.
The 2005 recall is unrelated to the contamination problem that prompted recalls of more than 100 pet-food brands in early 2007. In that case, investigators traced pet deaths to a toxic chemical, melamine, that had been added during manufacturing in China.
On the Net:
Diamond Pet Food Settlement: http://www.recalledpetfoodsettlement.com/
Diamond Pet Foods: http://diamondpet.com/
Welcome to the Diamond Pet Food Settlement Website
Overview
A settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit about certain Diamond Pet Food products. The settlement provides for an amount of $3.1 million to pay consumers who purchased recalled Diamond Pet Food products, and to compensate dog owners whose dogs were injured by eating Diamond Pet Food products.
Settlement Benefits
If the settlement is approved and you are a Class Member, you may be eligible to receive a benefit. Diamond has agreed to create a settlement fund of $3.1 million to pay for valid claims and for Court awarded attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses.
The settlement provides that consumers who purchased recalled dog food and did not already return it for a refund may receive money, provided the Class Member establishes that he or she purchased recalled Diamond Dog Food and did not return it.
Additionally, the settlement fund provides that Class Members who submit a valid claim showing that their dog was injured or that they incurred a veterinary bill as a result of Diamond Dog Food will be entitled to payment for veterinary expenses. The settlement also provides that Diamond will pay Court awarded attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses incurred in this lawsuit.
Please review the Settlement Agreement for complete details regarding these benefits.
To make a claim for settlement benefits, you must send in a completed Claim Form, postmarked no later than April 15, 2008. Download a Claim Form.
Request Exclusion from the Settlement Class
If you do not want to be legally bound by the settlement, you must exclude yourself by March 16, 2008 or you will not be able to sue Diamond Pet Foods about these claims ever again. If you exclude yourself, you will not get any money from the settlement. To exclude yourself, you must send a letter by mail stating that you want to be excluded. You must include your name, address, telephone number and signature. You must mail your exclusion request postmarked no later than March 16, 2008 to the following address:
Diamond Pet Food Settlement
c/o The Garden City Group, Inc.
Claims Administrator
P.O. Box 9214
Dublin, OH 43017-4614
Please review the Settlement Agreement for complete details regarding objecting to the settlement.
Object to the Settlement Terms
If you stay in the Settlement Class, and you wish to object to the settlement, you must notify the Court of your intent to object by February 26, 2008. You may appear at the Settlement Fairness Hearing (see below for details) to present objections to the settlement or any of its terms or provisions, including costs, attorney fees, or otherwise. Please review the Settlement Agreement for complete details regarding objecting to the settlement.
Settlement Fairness Hearing
The Court will hold the Settlement Fairness Hearing on March 26, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. to consider whether to approve the settlement and a request for attorneys’ fees by the lawyers representing the Class Members.
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING IMPORTANT DATES:
February 26, 2008
Objection Deadline, postmarked or received
March 16, 2008
Exclusion Deadline, postmarked or received
March 26, 2008
at 1:30 p.m.
Settlement Fairness Hearing
April 15, 2008
Claim Form Deadline, postmarked or received
