or section may contain misleading parts . please help clarify this article according to any suggestions provided on the talk page . december 2015 this article needs attention from an expert in journalism . the specific problem is a careful review of article content and sources needs be undertaken as discrepancies between source and article have been found ; moreover the article ignores company history ownership 1977 1995 by hugh parnell subject s father by stewart parnell after 2000 by others in the interim and so convolutes events across these periods resulting in a sometimes dubious non encyclopedic account of history and matters relevant to the controversy . see the talk page for details . wikiproject journalism or its portal may be able to help recruit an expert . december 2015 peanut corporation of america former type private genre peanut processing fate bankruptcy founded 1977 defunct february 13 2009 2009 02 13 headquarters lynchburg virginia united states number of locations blakely georgia ; suffolk virginia ; plainview texas key people stewart parnell pres. & ceo david royster vice pres. products peanut butter peanut paste peanut meal whole and chopped peanuts revenue 25.0 million 2007 1 owner stewart parnell number of employees 90 2007 1 website www.peanutcorp.com peanut corporation of america pca was a peanut processing business with headquarters in lynchburg virginia plants in other southern states and distribution across the united states now defunct as a result of one of the most massive and lethal food borne contamination events in u.s. history . pca was founded in 1977 and initially run by hugh parnell father of stewart parnell with him and two other sons . the company was sold in 1994 1995 with the senior parnell retiring and with stewart parnell and others remaining with the new company as consultants . in 2000 control of pca returned to stewart parnell via a private sale . over this history pca came to operate processing facilities in blakely georgia suffolk virginia and plainview texas providing peanut and peanut butter products primarily to the institutional food market schools prisons and nursing homes to food manufacturers for use in cookies snacks ice cream and dog treats and to other low end markets . pca permanently halted its operations after it was found to be the source of a massive salmonella outbreak in the u.s. during late 2008 and early 2009 . by 2007 prior to closing its doors pca had grown to 90 employees and was doing 25 million in annual sales . it has been estimated to have been manufacturing roughly 2.5 % of processed peanuts in the u.s. at that time . the 2008 contamination followed a long history of food quality issues . there had been concerns about sanitation at the company by private individuals since at least the mid 1980s when the company was run by its founder stewart parnell s father hugh parnell . in addition in the years just prior to its sale and hugh parnell s retirement pca was sued by american candy company in 1990 and by zachary confections inc. of frankfort indiana in 1991 after discovery that pca s peanut products exceeded the fda tolerance level for aflatoxin a mold derived toxin common to peanuts . moreover as a result of the coming contamination event investigations would show that some pca processing was being done without fda knowledge and oversight and other food handling and processing areas had gone long periods without federal inspection . in late 2008 and early 2009 as a result of the salmonella contamination event 9 people died and at least 714 people half of them children fell ill all from food poisoning after eating products containing contaminated peanuts . this contamination triggered the most extensive food recall in u.s. history up to that time involving 46 states more than 360 companies and more than 3 900 different products manufactured using pca ingredients . the contamination and recall had immediate major ramifications for the market of this set of farm products and further impact on public perceptions of food safety and on government regulation of the same . on february 13 2009 peanut corporation of america ceased all manufacturing and business operations and filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation . as of february 2009 a federal criminal investigation was continuing and at least a dozen civil lawsuits had been filed . in september 2015 stewart parnell was sentenced after earlier conviction on more than 70 criminal charges including felony charges that included knowingly shipping tainted food across state lines to 28 years in prison for his role in the nationwide outbreak . contents 1 scope of business 2 american candy aflatoxin suit 3 fda oversight before 2008 4 salmonella contamination of products 4.1 discovery and impact 4.2 recall 5 2009 investigations 5.1 georgia 5.1.1 journalistic 5.1.2 food and drug administration 5.2 texas 5.3 virginia 6 criminal proceedings 6.1 investigation 6.1.1 state level 6.1.2 federal level 6.2 convictions 6.3 sentencings 7 bankruptcy 8 other federal action 9 owner 10 personal life 11 references 12 external links scope of business edit this section needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . december 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message pca was a peanut processing business founded and run by hugh parnell father of stewart parnell with this and two other sons from 1977 1994 with headquarters in lynchburg virginia . 2 the company was sold in 1994 1995 with the senior parnell retiring and with stewart parnell and others remaining with the new company as consultants . 2 3 in 2000 control of pca returned to stewart parnell via a private sale . 2 over this history pca came to operate processing facilities in blakely georgia suffolk virginia and plainview texas 2 providing peanuts peanut butter peanut meal and peanut paste to an institutional food market citation needed to schools prisons and nursing homes citation needed as well as to low budget retail outlets such as dollar stores 4 and to food manufacturers for use in cookies snacks ice cream and dog treats . citation needed it has been estimated to have been manufacturing roughly 2.5 percent of processed peanuts in the u.s. at its height 5 with 90 employees and 25 million in annual sales in 2007 . 1 the company filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy and permanently halted its processing and sales operations after being found to be the source of a massive salmonella outbreak in the united states beginning in 2008 . 6 american candy aflatoxin suit edit this section needs expansion with a more full account and citations regarding this major regulatory and legal issue in the period of hugh parnell s leadership . you can help by adding to it . december 2015 pca was sued in 1990 by american candy company after the fda discovered that pca s peanut butter exceeded the fda tolerance level for aflatoxin 5 a mold derived toxin common to peanut production ; citation needed american candy had turned the peanut butter into 8 000 unshipped cases of kisses for wal mart . 5 verification needed another lawsuit was brought by zachary confections inc. of frankfort indiana in 1991 after a 40 020 pound shipment of nuts from pca was also found to have an unacceptably high level of aflatoxin . 5 fda oversight before 2008 edit this section needs expansion with thorough coverage of reporting on oversight prior top the salmonella event . you can help by adding to it . december 2015 in 2001 fda inspectors also found that products from the blakely plant were potentially exposed to insecticides according to a report obtained by the associated press . 7 according to virginia state inspection records the pca blanching operations in suffolk virginia had some of the same food safety problems that would be found in the company s georgia plant see below . inspection in 2008 found mold on totes holding peanuts counted 43 mouse droppings on the floor and saw a live bird walking and flying inside the warehouse . 8 9 salmonella contamination of products edit discovery and impact edit in late 2008 and early 2009 nine people died and at least 714 people in 46 states half of them children fell ill due to food poisoning from eating products containing contaminated peanuts according to the centers for disease control and prevention cdc . among persons with available information 23 % reported being hospitalized . 10 the real numbers were believed to be much higher since for every reported case of salmonellosis on average another 38 or so cases go unreported according to the cdc . 11 a combination of epidemiological analysis and laboratory testing by state officials in minnesota and connecticut the food and drug administration fda and the cdc enabled the fda to confirm that the sources of the outbreak of illnesses caused by salmonella typhimurium were peanut butter peanut paste and peanut meal produced by the peanut corporation of america pca at its blakely georgia processing plant . 12 on february 7 2009 oregon officials confirmed the first case of salmonellosis in a dog that had eaten biscuits contaminated with the pca produced peanut products . 13 the company issued a statement categorically denying the allegations ; when 14 15 16 in january 2009 it shut down production and laid off 50 employees at the blakely plant . 17 18 19 recall edit this contamination event triggered the most extensive food recall ever in u.s. history . as of april 22 2009 it involved at least 361 companies and 3 913 different products manufactured using pca ingredients . 20 the recall included everything produced at the blakely plant since january 1 2007 14 21 22 23 as well as everything ever produced at the plainview texas plant . 24 25 products supplied for some school lunches were pulled 26 and the federal emergency management agency fema even recalled emergency meals sent after a massive ice storm . 27 28 since the storm left many without power the united states postal service went door to door in kentucky to warn residents and hand out 600 000 flyers from fema . 29 food banks nationwide had to discard thousands of pounds of food in time of high demand from millions of u.s. families in need . 30 the recall did not involve major brand peanut butters since pca primarily served only low budget and institutional providers but many consumers reacted by avoiding peanut products altogether driving down the sales of all brands of peanut butter by nearly 25 % . 26 31 this caused great harm to the industry and farmers already suffering from low prices due to the 2008 bumper crop and the deepening economic crisis . 18 32 33 34 early estimated losses to the u.s. peanut industry because of this outbreak would be on the order of 1 billion . 13 35 2009 investigations edit georgia edit journalistic edit following initial reporting of the contamination s source reporters and investigators began taking a careful look at the sites run by pca . the washington post reported on february 14 2009 the view of david brooks a buyer for a snack company that had visited pca facilities in the mid 1980s when pca was under hugh parnell s control that everybody in the peanut industry in the states involved georgia virginia and texas knew of the serious sanitation issues associated with pca ; brooks went on to state that pca was a time bomb waiting to go off . 2 former employees interviewed by the chicago tribune stated that conditions in the plant were filthy and nasty and that they would never eat the peanut butter or allow their children to eat it . one employee remembered seeing a family of baby mice in a tote of peanuts and others recalled having to step