The salmonella outbreak related to the Peanut Corporation of America’s products resulted in nine deaths and hundreds hospitalized. According to industry estimates, the peanut industry suffered $1 billion in losses from consumers avoiding peanut products. Recently, two executives were sentenced to 20+ year jail terms and the QA manager was sentenced to a 5 year jail term. These criminal convictions are the first of their kind for a food poisoning outbreak. Join us as we discuss lessons learned from the PCA case and what you can do to prevent a similar situation from occurring in your organization.

1. Jail Time for Peanut Corporation of America
Executives and QA Manager:
Lessons for Food Producers
Speakers: Shawn Stevens & Terra Brimberry
January 13th, 2016

2. Welcome!
2
• Audio Options:
– Choose “Mic & Speakers” to
use computer speakers
– Choose “Telephone” to dial in
using info provided
• All lines are in listen-only mode
• Please post your questions at
any time
• A link to the recording will be
emailed shortly after the event

3. Today’s Speakers
3
Shawn Stevens
Global Food Safety Lawyer
stevens@foodindustrycounsel.com
920.698.2561
www.foodindustrycounsel.com
Terra Brimberry
Alchemy Systems
terra.brimberry@alchemysystems.com
512.532.8057
www.alchemysystems.com

4. Agenda
4
• FDA Criminal Liability
• Peanut Corporation of America Case Study
• Building a Food Safety Culture
• Q & A

5. 5
FDA Criminal Liability
FOR
FOOD COMPANY EXECUTIVES
AND MANAGEMENT

6. 6
FDA Criminal Liability
• What is your risk of criminal exposure?
• Why is there risk of criminal exposure?
• What did FDA do with PCA?
• What is FDA doing to other companies?
• What can you do to prevent it from happening to you?

7. 7
High
Medium
Low
What is your risk of exposure?

8. 8
FDA Microbiological Profiling
PulseNet Database
Federal Grand Jury Subpoenas
What is your risk of exposure?

9. 9
Why is there risk of exposure?

10. 10
Why is there risk of exposure?

11. 11
Why is there risk of exposure?

12. 12
FSMA
Why is there risk of exposure?

13. 13
Why is there risk of exposure?

14. 14
What did FDA do to PCA?

15. 15
• Failing to report positive results
• Retesting product that tested positive
• Denying existence of any positive results
• Creating false COAs
• Shipping product contaminated with filth
2001
Parnell takes
over PCA
2003
Economic
Adulteration
2004-2008
Microbiological
Adulteration
The PCA Timeline

16. 16
PCA Adulteration Timeline
September
6, 2008
First illness
identified
November 2008-April 2009
• 714 illnesses confirmed
• 46 states
• 9 people died
• 2,833 products affected

17. 17
PCA Trial Timeline
February 11,
2011
Sickened
victims call
for criminal
charges
Grand jury
subpoenas
are issued
October 24,
2012
February 11,
2013
An operations
manager pleads
guilty to criminal
charges
February 21, 2013
DOJ files a 76
count indictment
against former
PCA officials
September 21,
2015
PCA employees
sentenced

18. 18
Mary Wilkerson
Michael Parnell
Stewart Parnell
- 5 years in prison
- 20 years in prison
- 28 years in prison
Sentences

19. 19
THE PARK DOCTRINE
What is FDA Doing to Other Companies?

20. 20
What is FDA Doing to Other Companies?

21. 21
What can you do to Prevent it from
Happening to you?
• Criminal Protection Audit (CPA)
• Attorney / Client
• Environmental Profiling
• 3 Cs

22. 22
Building a Food Safety Culture

23. Building a Food Safety Culture
23
Food safety culture starts at the top…
Maple Leaf Foods
– Leaders of food safety have to
create a culture of safety
…but lives on the front line

24. Maple Leaf’s Challenge
24
• Improve food safety so it never happens again
• Create a sustainable culture of food and worker safety
• Align 32 plant sub-cultures into one shared safety culture

25. Maple Leaf’s Approach
25
• Remembrance at every company meeting
• Implemented consistent and engaging safety training across all
plants
• Use real-time frontline coaching to observe and change
behavior
• Share food safety best practices with everyone – not a
competitive issue

26. Maple Leaf’s Outcomes
26
• Common safety culture across all 32 plants
• Management tools for continuous improvement
• 61% reduction in safety incidents
“Employees understand the critical issues
of food and workplace safety.”
- Lone Jespersen, Director of Food Safety,
Maple Leaf Foods

27. PCQI Certification Onsite Training
27
Background
• New FSMA regulations require that key personnel in charge of managing the Food
Safety Plan at a company must be a “Preventive Control Qualified Individual.”
• The Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance (FSPCA) has partnered with the FDA
to develop course curriculum to meet the “Preventive Control Qualified Individual”
requirements.
• Companies have a specific amount of time to comply depending on their size.
• Alchemy will offer an FSPCA-approved classroom training to be PCQI certified.
Who Should Attend
• QA Directors and Managers
• QA Supervisors
• Operations Managers
• SQF/BRC Practitioners and Auditors
Register at: www.alchemysystems.com/PreventiveControl
Locations
• Atlanta, GA – February 9-11
• Austin, TX – February 23-25
• Glendale, CA – March 16-18

28. 28
Q & A

29. THANK YOU
Telephone: 888.988.8832
contactus@alchemysystems.com
www.alchemysystems.com
http://blog.alchemysystems.com/