Settlement reached in ‘popcorn lung’ case

Sept. 19--A company has agreed to pay $5 million in a public settlement to end a local man's claims that its butter flavoring chemicals harmed his lungs.

Carmi Flavor and Fragrance Corp. agreed to the $5 million payment as a Buchanan County jury was being selected late Monday in the case. The jury panel was scheduled to decide only on damages owed to the plaintiff, George Giles of Clarksdale, Missouri.

Giles filed the lawsuit against Carmi, a company that lists its domestic headquarters in Commerce, California. Giles worked for the Ventura Foods facility in St. Joseph from 1997 to 2003 and claims he was exposed to diacetyl, a chemical used in butter flavoring.

Circuit Judge Daniel Kellogg had issued sanctions on Sept. 1 against the Carmi Corp. for its failure to produce items, including insurance policies, in discovery.

"This failure and dilatory disclosure follows a pattern of negligence at best, and willful contempt at worst, warranting sanctions," Kellogg stated.

The judge struck Carmi's pleadings from the record, granted a judgement to the plaintiff by default and set the case for trial on only the issue of damages.

The civil lawsuit was filed in 2013 and wound up on the Buchanan County docket after an appellate court sent the case back for a new hearing. Giles' lawsuit called diacetyl a strong irritant that led to his difficulty in breathing.

The case was not directly connected the the cluster of lung issues that resulted in lawsuits against a company that makes microwave popcorn in Joplin, Missouri. Those "popcorn lung" lawsuits also revolved around the chemical diacetyl.

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