Iowa Food Poisoning: Listeria, listeriosis, contamination and children

Canadian tainted meat case settles for $27 million

Between 20 and 29 people died from food poisoning along with 5,000 who were part of a class-action settlement involving listeriosis-contaminated deli meat. Canada’s Maple Leaf Foods paid the settlement.

“Under the settlement Maple Leaf's liability insurer will pay, $120,000 will go to the estates of people who died plus funeral expenses, $35,000 to their spouses, $30,000 for each of their children and $20,000 for their parents.

Related illnesses lasting a day or two will be eligible for a $750 payout and people who were sick two weeks to a month will receive $8,000 plus any loss of income and $750 a day for hospitalization, the report said. “

Children are most susceptible to listeriosis-contamination and can die. Listeriosis is spread through preprocessed meats like hot dogs and deli meat.

“Healthy people who get listeriosis usually have only mild illness, such as fever, muscle aches, nausea, or diarrhea. The people at highest risk for serious, potentially deadly illness from listeriosis, such as bacteremia or meningitis, are newborn babies and people with weakened immune systems, such as those on steroids for any reason and people with cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, or AIDS. Pregnant women who get listeriosis are usually only mildly ill, but the infection can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or infection in the baby.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that between 1,100 and 2,500 cases of listeriosis (infection with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes) occur in the United States each year. Approximately 25% of these people die as a result of the illness. It's likely, however, that this is an underestimate. “

Listeria and Listeriosis - The Basics