What Happened?
A cantaloupe grower (Jensen Farms) was farming
just 90 miles away from The Rocky Ford farm was miss advertising their
cantaloupes as “Rocky Ford” cantaloupes back in 2011. The cantaloupes that were
supplied by this company were not washed properly and developed listeriosis on
the external skin; there was an outbreak in 19 states and infected 84 people
and killed 15 people. “Listeriosis is a
serious infection usually caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium
Listeria monocytogenes.”
How should Rocky Ford Protect Their Brand?
“Wal-Mart, Jensen Farms, and other food companies have a public
responsibility to all consumers to sell and distribute food that is free and
clear of dangerous adulterants such as Listeria–no exceptions,” said the
Palmer family’s attorney, William Marler. “In this case, a lapse in food safety assurance has relegated an
innocent man to a hospital bed for a long time.” In order for Rocky Ford
to protect their brand they should recall all of its products. Although it was
indeed a different supplier (Jensen Farms) who supplied contaminated products
under their name they should still recall their products. Why you may ask? Well
because it will give their customers the assurance they need to be able to
trust their brand again. By recalling their products it will show that they
care about their customers’ health and safety. Rocky Ford should also trademark its name so that
no other companies can try to use their name for their production and have
lower standards and processes. “A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol,
and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one
party from those of others.” Also Rocky Ford should really try to
develop good relationships with the companies that they do business with. I don’t
know if Wal-Mart knew that it was getting its cantaloupes from a different farm
that was just using the “Rocky Ford” name but they should have. Or Wal-Mart was
just trying to get its cantaloupes at a lower price so they didn’t care that it
was from a different supplier that was using a more trusted companies name.
Citations:
Investigation Update: Multistate Outbreak of
Listeriosis Linked to Whole Cantaloupes from Jensen Farms, Colorado. Retrieved
on August 14, 2013 from http://www.cdc.gov/listeria/outbreaks/cantaloupes-jensen-farms/093011/
Lawsuit
Filed In Rocky Ford Cantaloupe Listeria Outbreak. Retrieved on August 15, 2013
from http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/09/lawsuit-filed-in-rocky-ford-cantaloupe-listeria-outbreak/#.UhQXk3-rPwl
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