In the lawsuit filed Monday, the woman said her daughter started showing symptoms on Nov. 10 and has lost 7 pounds since then.
LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A woman who claims her daughter contracted an E. coli infection after eating at a catered event in the Rockwood School District is suing the company that catered the event.
In a lawsuit filed Monday, Jennifer Canvas says her daughter ate at an event hosted by Andre’s Banquets and Catering on Nov. 8 and began showing symptoms of an E. coli infection two days later. claims. In the days since, Kumbath said her daughter has been unable to keep her food down and has lost 7 pounds.
On Monday, the St. Louis County Department of Public Health announced 94 confirmed cases of E. coli, primarily in the Lockwood Summit High School community. The health department linked the outbreak to four separate events “hosted or catered by Andre’s Banquets and Catering” in conjunction with the school.
Mr. Andre’s owner, John Armengol Jr., denied in a statement that the caterer was the source of the infection, and the health department said the vendor was cooperating with the investigation.
“Mr. Andres is heartbroken for the families who have had to go through all kinds of food poisoning problems. We know how serious food poisoning can be. That’s why , Ms. Andres is taking special measures to ensure that her students never have to experience food poisoning again,” Armengol said in a statement Monday. “All of our food products are HAACP tested and USDA certified through our providers. Our providers are the largest in the United States and stand behind every food product we order and serve.”
The health department said it has not determined the exact ingredients believed to have caused the outbreak, or the nature or timing of the contamination, but that it believes the salad was the source.
The lawsuit alleges that Andre’s was negligent in serving contaminated food, which caused Kumbas’ daughter to become ill.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for her daughter’s illness.
Andre’s owner John Armengol Jr. released the following statement Friday night:
“I categorically deny that my business is the source of the outbreak. The health department we work with has not tested any of the products (salads) or confirmed the source. ”
“At Andre, we served more than 3,400 meals of the same food last week and there were no infections of any kind.
“We check our product loads daily and are inspected by the USDA.
“The farms I purchase test products from every day are USDA inspected.
“The press release by the health department, which did not text the food and did not include Andre’s name, is not only reckless, it is a smear against a company that has supported this community since 1980. We will do everything we can to protect ourselves. Let our community know that we provide safe products and environments for every event we do.
“Andre’s hosted more than 3,500 events last year and continues to protect its reputation and food source.”
