On July 2, a federal court issued an injunction prohibiting a Louisiana company from manufacturing and selling adulterated foods in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA).
In a civil lawsuit filed June 10, the United States alleged that Freshy Foods, LLC, Team Fresh & Go, LLC, and their owners, Floyd D. James and Ida M. James, violated the FDCA by manufacturing and selling adulterated foods at their food processing facility in Elmwood, Louisiana.
Freshy Foods LLC and Team Fresh & Go LLC manufactured and sold prepared foods, including sandwiches and fruit cups. According to the complaint, an environmental inspection in 2023 detected Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono), a pathogen that can cause listeriosis, at the defendants’ facilities. It also alleges that a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection in 2023 found unsanitary conditions at the facilities. According to the complaint, the defendants voluntarily revoked their registrations to process FDA-regulated foods in August 2023.
“Food manufacturers must ensure the safety of their products,” said Principal Deputy Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, Director of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice works closely with the FDA to take appropriate legal action against food manufacturers who fail to comply with laws designed to protect the public health.”
“The FDA continues to emphasize that it is the responsibility of food manufacturers to ensure that food is produced under safe and sanitary conditions,” said FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods Jim Jones. “When companies continually fail to demonstrate their ability to meet their legal responsibilities, the FDA will hold them accountable.”
The defendants filed an answer denying the government’s allegations but agreed to settle the case through a consent decree. The court’s order permanently enjoined the defendants from violating the FDCA. The consent decree also required the defendants to notify the FDA and comply with certain corrective measures before resuming production of FDA-regulated foods, with limited exceptions.
Attorneys Collin W. Trundle and Katherine A. Schmitt of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Lee Sears for the Eastern District of Louisiana, assisted by Chief Assistant Counsel Sarah Rosenberg of the FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel, prosecuted the case.
The claims resolved by the consent decree are allegations only, and no determination of liability has been made.
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