CNN
b (b (
Thito Ngobeni was just 18 days old when doctors first inserted a tube into the back of her head to drain excess fluid that had accumulated in her brain.
She was born with a condition called hydrocephalus, which doctors said was caused by a listeriosis infection her mother contracted while pregnant.
Now seven, Thito has already had six operations to alter his glory due to infections and blockages. Hospital bills have stripped the family of five of their medical insurance cover, forcing them to sell their home to cover mounting debts.
“We still owe a lot of money to the hospital, we still owe a lot of money to the bank,” said Thito’s mother, Montala, who is herself. Had to have double hip replacement at 37 due to listeriosis infection. “It is very difficult and we are on our own. No one is helping us.
Listeria is a foodborne illness caused by Listeria bacteria. It can cause severe illness in high-risk groups, including the elderly, newborns and pregnant women. Pregnant women can pass the infection to their unborn babies, potentially causing lifelong health problems with the brain, kidneys or heart.
Montla It is one of more than 1,000 people infected in South Africa between January 2017 and mid-2018. What is the World Health Organization? announced According to South Africa’s health department, at least 216 recorded deaths, including 93 children under one month of age and infants 14 and under, have been the world’s largest ever listeriosis outbreak. .
Others, such as Theto, an infant in utero, were left with the infected Serious health complications including cerebral palsy and other neurological problems.
In March 2018, South African health officials Added to the outbreak Ready-to-eat meat, primarily polony, is produced in an Enterprise Foods facility it then owns. Tiger Brandsthe country’s largest food producer.
Based on a timeline of the outbreak given by the South African Department of Health, the contaminated product was likely manufactured and sold for more than a year.
Following the findings from the Department of Health, the company temporarily closed the factory, located in the town of Polokwane, north of Johannesburg, as well as two other sites in Germston and Pretoria. It also recalled ready-to-eat meat products, to promise To settle any “legitimate claims that may be raised against him in due course.”
Nearly seven years later, a class-action lawsuit brought by Montalha against him and more than a thousand other plaintiffs remains unresolved, despite Evidence Collected by local health officials who are tying the outbreak to Enterprise Foods Plant and products.
Based on this evidence, litigation is warranted The plaintiffs “contracted listeriosis and suffered harm” after eating contaminated products manufactured by Tiger Brands, the company denied. In legal filings.
“Liability has not yet been determined,” says Tiger Brands.
“While the legal process has proven to be long and difficult, we reiterate our commitment to ensuring that the listeresis class action litigation is in the best interest of all parties, particularly the victims of listeresis,” the company said. ” CNN.
According to Richard Spoor, a senior associate at Richard Spoor in Corporate Attorneys (RSI), the law firm representing him. Plaintiffs, the case will eventually go to trial this year. He told CNN that settlement discussions are “progressing well,” but noted that RSI is to continue To prepare for the test.
Last year, the United States experienced its own deadly listeria outbreak linked to deli meat produced by Boar’s Head, a popular deli brand that sells ready-to-eat meats and ready-to-eat in supermarkets across the country. Sells cheese.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ten people died and 61 became ill after eating the contaminated products. Federal health officials announced the outbreak in November, but the company is now facing multiple lawsuits related to the outbreak.
In a letter to consumers in September, Boyer’s head apologized for the Listeria contamination of its liverwurst product and said it was taking “comprehensive steps … to prevent an incident like this from happening again.”
Bill Marler, co-founder of US food safety law firm Marler Clark, is representing nearly two dozen people in lawsuits against the company. A well-known foodborne disease advocate, he has also consulted RSI on the Tiger Brands case.
“It’s likely that my clients in America will get justice before people in South Africa will see a dime as it relates to compensation,” he told CNN.
Marler suggests that if the United States were to experience a South African listeriosis outbreak, the company responsible could potentially be awarded $1 billion to $2 billion in damages. By comparison, Tiger Brands, if found liable by a judge for the spill, could be in for just 2 billion rand ($106 million), according to preliminary estimates by lawyers bringing the class-action suit.
“It was really clear in 2018 that the cause of the outbreak was the Tiger Brands plant and it was polony,” Marler alleged.
“Nothing has changed, except it’s been six years, almost seven years, where the victims have been left with nothing. I think it’s a travesty.
The case made by RSI relies heavily on specialized genetic testing conducted by South Africa’s CDC equivalent, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD). Known as whole-genome sequencing, it matched strains of Listeria found in the Enterprise Foods Polokwane plant and products to strains found in most people.
Dr. Jono Thomas, head of NICD’s Center for Enteric Diseases, likened the testing to a “DNA fingerprint” that allowed the institute to compare bacteria from patients, contaminated food and factories. “And find out that they’re very health-conscious about whether they’re a perfect match.”
Conclusive evidence for the general existence of so-called “diffusive stress”. The source of the outbreak“That told reporters In March 2018. NICD has not identified the same strain at any meat processing facilities in South Africa.
a statement The following month, Tiger Brands admitted that its own tests had found the same strain of Listeria in samples of ready-to-eat meat products from Enterprise Foods. Convenience in Polokwane.
The company told CNN this month that the NICD’s refusal to share “all of the data in its possession…significantly impedes a speedy resolution.” Case
Malosi, of RSIK, disputed the controversy, saying NICD’s whole-genome sequencing test results had long been made available to Tiger Brands and had “all the necessary evidence” to link the company to the outbreak. Money has been provided.
“If Tiger Brands can settle this issue for a long time, they can for a long time,” Malosi told CNN. In the past few months alone, the company has tried to provide some financial relief to victims with urgent medical needs, but for the most part it has been “obstructive and uncooperative,” he said.
The NICD declined an interview with CNN, but in a statement In April 2018, the outbreak was linked to enterprise foods The facility, it said: “It is extremely misleading for anyone to claim that the root cause of this listeriosis outbreak is unknown.”
Tiger Brands should take ‘accountability’
As the legal process unfolds, Montalha says He is eager to “do the right thing” for Tiger Brands.
“Our innocent children are struggling for something they didn’t eat. (Tiger Brands) owes us an apology and then compensation.
Nithbiseng Ramamin shares this sentiment. Ramanamin, one of the other plaintiffs in the class action seeking compensation from Tiger Brands, contracted listeriosis while pregnant, allegedly after eating polony produced by the company.
Her son, Onkrabil, was born two months early with cerebral palsy.
“I want to ask Tiger Brands to be accountable and show remorse to the people affected by their negligence,” he told CNN.
Now seven, he is unable to perform even the most basic functions, such as feeding himself, sitting up unassisted or turning himself over at night. It needs adult diapers and a special diet. Like Thito, he endured multiple operations in his short life.
“I was a frequent buyer of (Tiger Brands) products. I liked cold meats and thought they were safe,” Ramanamin said. Literally stealing.”
