Food-Related Liability

No one could really blame the food industry for being a little paranoid. Over the past two years, food producers, processors and restaurants have increasingly been in the cross-hairs with legislators, regulators, public health advocates and the plaintiffs' bar. The nation's obesity problem, consumer concern over the methods by which food is mass-produced and marketed, and recent widespread contamination incidents have made the industry vulnerable to a multi-pronged attack. Companies and their product liability counsel can expect an upward trend in both traditional and innovative food-based cases, as well as expanded civil and criminal statutory exposure. Individual product liability suits and incidents of contamination will unfold against this backdrop of litigation, legislation and regulation, making it imperative that food producers defend their products on many different levels. This article examines recent notable lawsuits involving packaged and restaurant food items. A companion article concerning food legislation and regulation will follow in an upcoming issue.