David Baugher, Special to Missouri Lawyers Media //January 3, 2025//
A groundbreaking case related to pulmonary issues claimed in connection to flavoring additives has resulted in a massive eight-figure verdict for a food worker.
“Employees in Missouri should not have to give up their lungs in exchange for a job,” said attorney Ben Fadler of Ketchmark & McCreight.
Jurors in Monroe County awarded more than $58.6 million to James Graham, a man employed at a Hannibal food manufacturing plant from 2005 to 2011. The plaintiff claimed exposure to a pair of products — diacetyl and 2,3 pentanedione — which are used to impart butter flavor. Diacetyl has been the subject of litigation for some time but Fadler’s submission noted that the Graham matter was among the first victories for plaintiffs regarding 2,3 pentanedione. Both substances were supplied to the plant by defendant Givaudan Flavors Corporation.
Matters related to diacetyl have often centered on popcorn but this instance was a case involving general food manufacture.
“When he left, he’d lost about 25 percent of his lung capacity as a result of the exposure,” Fadler said of his client. “As a result, he is a different person unable to do a lot of the things he used to do.”
Fadler said that the defense contended that Graham’s quarter century of smoking played a role in his lung problems.
“They also claimed that the amount of these substances in their flavorings was small enough that it shouldn’t have caused any injury,” Fadler said. “They also claimed that there was not enough scientific consensus that these substances actually cause injury at all.”
Fadler said he put on a pulmonologist who is regarded as a pioneer in these matters.
“He knows how to find and diagnose this disease better than anyone in the country,” he said.
Jurors ultimately returned a verdict with $2 million in compensatory damages but more than $56.6 million in punitive damages.
“That punitive damages number is, to the penny, four percent of Givaudan’s net worth that the jury was provided,” Fadler said.
The defendant was represented by Kim Ramundo, Diane Goderre and Emily Montion of Thompson Hine as well as Thomas Hayde of Spencer Fane. Goderre declined comment and Ramundo and Hayde did not return requests for comment.
A Givaudan spokesperson declined to answer specific questions but did release a statement on the trial’s outcome.
“We respectfully disagree with the decision,” it said via email. “We will be filing all necessary post-trial motions and will be appealing, if necessary.”
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- $58,631,960 verdict for plaintiffs
- Product liability
- Breakdown: $2 million for compensatory damages/$56,631,960 for punitive damages
- Venue: Monroe County Circuit Court
- Case Number/Date: 20MM-CV00011
- Judge: Rachel Bringer Shepherd
- Plaintiffs’ Experts: Adam Finkel, Princeton, N.J., (toxicology); Charles Pue, Sarasota, Fla., (pulmonology); Linda Schwieger, St. Louis, (life care planning); William Rogers, St. Louis, (accounting)
- Defendants’ Experts: James Stanley, (OSHA hazard communications), Palm Beach; Patrick Breysse, Baltimore, (exposure modeling); Gregory Diette, Baltimore, (pulmonology)
- Injuries: Cardiovascular, pulmonary, respiratory
- Special Damages: $1.4 million life plan
- Insurers: Zurich Insurance Company; Chubb Insurance Company of Europe S.A.; XL Winterhur International Insurance Company Limited; HDI Haftpflichtverband der Deutschen Insurance Company; AIG Europe Insurance Company; Allianz Versicherung (Schweiz) AG Insurance
- Caption: James Graham v. Givaudan Flavors Corporation
- Plaintiffs’ Attorneys: Ben Fadler, Steven Ketchmark and Griffin Albaugh, Ketchmark & McCreight, (Leawood, Kan.)
- Defendants’ Attorneys: Kimberly Ramundo, Diane Goderre and Emily Montion of Thompson Hine, (Cincinnati), and Thomas Hayde of Spencer Fane, (St. Louis)
This article credit to MOLawyersMedia