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Published: Thu, February 12, 2009 - 7:14 am CST
WASHINGTON – The president of the peanut company accused of knowingly distributing salmonella-tainted peanut products and the manager of the company's plant in Blakely, Ga., refused Wednesday to answer the questions of a congressional panel.Stewart Parnell of Lynchburg, Va., the president, and Sammy Lightsey, manager of the plant where investigators believe the contaminated peanut butter originated, took the Fifth. Each invoked his constitutional right not to incriminate himself, refusing to answer the questions of the investigations panel of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
"Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, on advice of my counsel, I respectfully decline to answer your questions based on the protections afforded me under the U.S. Constitution," Parnell repeatedly said in response to questions from members of the panel.
The committee had issued a subpoena to compel Parnell to testify.
Both men were quickly dismissed after saying they intended to answer every question the same way. Parnell, Lightsey and their lawyers refused to answer questions from reporters afterward.
Investigators have linked the salmonella outbreak, which has sickened at least 600 people and contributed to the deaths of eight, to Peanut Corp. products that were sent to some 50 manufacturers of cookies, crackers and ice cream.
A Food and Drug Administration probe found the company shipped peanut products that tested positive for salmonella.12 times since 2007. In some cases, Peanut Corp. received a second test that came back negative for salmonella before shipping, the report said. In others, product was shipped after testing positive for salmonella but before results were in from the second test.
After he was made aware of a positive test for salmonella in September 2008, Parnell wrote in an e-mail the tests were “costing us huge $$$$$ and causing obviously a huge lapse in time from the time we pick up peanut until the time we can invoice.”
In August 2008, Parnell instructed Lightsey “let’s turn them loose then,” after a sample that tested positive for salmonella later tested negative.
The FDA’s findings have triggered a widespread recall of all peanut butter and peanut products produced at the facility over the past two years. More than 1,900 food and pet food products have been recalled as a result. The FBI is also investigating.
The hearing was an attempt to determine what went wrong and how to improve food safety.
Rep. Henry A. Waxman, chairman of the energy and commerce committee, said the internal Peanut Corp. e-mails showed the company cared more about its bottom line than customers.
“Even after the FDA began investigating in January and forced the company to recall some products, PCA’s first concern was financial,” Waxman said.
Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., held a container of recalled products that contained Peanut Corp. peanut butter, and said the company did not follow the FDA’s mandatory requirements to destroy the entire lot of a contaminated product and uncover the root cause.
“A subsequent negative result for salmonella on a sample never negates the initial finding of a confirmed positive,” Walden said.
Charles T. Deibel, president of Deibel Laboratories Inc., did testing at the Blakely plant and found salmonella there. It is not unheard of to find contamination or for retesting to be done, he said.
“What is virtually unheard of is for an entity to disregard those results and place potentially contaminated products into the stream of commerce,” he said.
Internal e-mails also showed that on Jan. 19, Parnell asked FDA officials to allow the company to use raw peanuts from the Blakely plant at the company’s plant in Texas in products there.
"Obviously we are not shipping any peanut butter products affected by the recall but desperately at least need to turn the raw peanuts on our floor into money," Parnell wrote.
The Texas plant was shut down Monday after salmonella was found.
Family members of those who had been sickened spoke at the hearing. They questioned how the company could have been allowed to operate and said they should be punished.
“This is a completely criminal act,” said Peter Hurley of Oregon, whose 3-year-old son was sickened. “In essence, [Parnell] was playing Russian roulette with children and the elderly.”
The FDA sent Georgia state inspectors to the plant in 2007 and 2008 but tests for salmonella were not done. The company was not required to provide its internal tests to regulators.
House members said they plan comprehensive legislation to overhaul the regulation of the nation’s food supply.
“If there is any good that can come from this tragic outbreak, it could come from long-overdue legislative change to protect the American people from dangers in the nation’s food supply,” said Rep. Bart Stupak, chairman of the committee’s investigations panel.
Contact Amy Dominello at 202-662-7671 or adominello@mediageneral.com
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