DAKOTA
DUNES, S.D., September 13, 2012 —Beef Products, Inc. (BPI) announced its suit
against ABC News today for defamatory coverage of the product, lean finely
textured beef (LFTB). The beef company is suing ABC for “knowingly and
intentionally publishing false and disparaging statements” regarding BPI and
LFTB.
The complaint, filed in the Circuit
Court in Union County, South Dakota, asks a jury to award BPI more than $1
billion in compensatory, statutory and punitive damages.
BPI alleges that ABC and others
launched a “disinformation campaign” against BPI companies, which caused sales
to decline from approximately five million pounds of LFTB per week to less than
two million pounds per week, three BPI facilities to close and more than 700
employees to lose their jobs. The news outlet repeatedly referred to the product
as “pink slime.”
Dan Webb, Chairman of Winston &
Strawn LLP, said ABC knowingly misled consumers into believing LFTB was not
safe for consumption through “nearly 200 false, misleading and defamatory
statements.”
ABC News Senior Vice President
Jeffery Schneider released a simple statement regarding the lawsuit that it is
“without merit” and “we will contest it vigorously.”
BPI claims the news outlet made
false statements about their products after it received conclusions from USDA
and FDA that LFTB is a safe, nutritious lean beef.
“The blatantly false and
disparaging statements made about our lean beef have done more than hurt my
family and our companies; they have jeopardized the future of our employees and
their families,” said Eldon Roth, founder and CEO of BPI.
#30
For more news, go to www.agri-pulse.com