Barbara Anderman  |  October 22, 2014

Category: Consumer News

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sushi rice class action lawsuit
Farmers’ Rice Cooperative (FRC), a more than 700-strong grower-owned network responsible for over 20 percent of the rice crop in California, is accused of selling “flush rice,” knowingly mixing rice contaminated with black mold and animal droppings with edible rice and distributing it as “premium variety.”

Plaintiffs in this latest claim are JinJu Sushi, doing business as the “I Love Teriyaki” chain, along with a two Sacramento residents, one a customer of the restaurant. In addition to the sales claim, plaintiffs are adding that FRC stored the rice in such a way to make this flush possible.

Plaintiffs are concerned that diners may have been exposed to the alleged rat droppings and mold in the sushi rice. Brandon Harder, the director of government relations and communications for FRC, says, “The recent claims … are absurd.

Prior complaints against FRC claim that restaurant and store owners were led to believe they were buying U.S. No. 1 Extra Fancy rice, sold under the names of New Variety, New Rose and Imperial Rose, but were actually being sold the same “flush,” or tainted rice as the current tainted rice lawsuit alleges.

Their sushi rice lawsuit stated that, “Disposing flush rice by blending it with food-grade rice unfairly allowed defendants to obtain a profit from rice that could not be legally sold for human consumption.” The general allegation is that if you have eaten sushi in California in the past four years, you have probably eaten tainted rice.

As in the current tainted rice lawsuit, Farmer’s Rice Cooperative said the claims are simply not true.

California’s state health department said it cannot comment as its investigation into Farmers’ Rice Cooperative is currently underway.

The Sushi Rice Class Action Lawsuit is Jinju Sushi Inc. v. Farmers Rice Cooperative Inc., Case No. BC553043, in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles.

Join a Free Sushi Rice Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you own a California restaurant or business that sold sushi within the past four years, you may be eligible to join a free class action lawsuit investigation.

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