Daily Harvest Sued After Consumers Say Food Caused Gallbladder Removal

PORTLAND, OR — An influencer in Portland is suing a New York based meal service provider after he says the food caused him to fall ill and have his gallbladder removed.

Luke Wesley Pearson told his followers June 19 that Daily Harvest sent him a package of its French Lentil + Leek Crumbles. He ate the crumbles twice, beginning on May 29.

"I had extreme stomach and gastro issues immediately following eating them," he said.

A week later, he ate the products again the night before a flight to Mexico.

"Worsening symptoms and everything went downhill from there shortly after eating," he said, noting he didn't associate the illness with the food at the time.

Pearson said he fell so ill, he needed surgery.

"My life is forever changed by this and I do not think that this is a coincidence, and Daily Harvest needs to be held accountable," he said.

He added: "I had to have an organ removed. My life has changed forever because of this."

As of Thursday, 133 people have reported adverse sicknesses stemming from the lentil products across 26 states, health regulators said. Those who fell ill were from the following states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

The company said it has received about 470 reports of illnesses or adverse reactions.

Forty-two people have been hospitalized as of Thursday.

The law firm Heisman Nunes & Hull and the food safety firm Marler Clark filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a Tulsa, Oklahoma, woman who also had her gallbladder removed.

Attorney Bill Marler said his law firm represents 127 people, 20 of whom had their gallbladder removed. The vast majority were healthy women between 25 and 45 years old who ate the crumbles.

The products were distributed nationwide, with the last illness reported June 21. The product was sold through online sales and in two retail locations; the Daily Harvest store in Chicago and a pop-up store in Los Angeles.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating the illnesses, along with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other state and local agencies.

Daily Harvest voluntarily recalled the crumble product June 17 in response to consumer complaints submitted to the company. The FDA is inspecting the product and collected samples to determine the cause of the illnesses.

From April 28 to June 17, about 28,000 units of the recalled product were distributed to consumers in the U.S. through online sales and direct delivery, as well as through retail sales.

The crumble product is frozen and comes packaged in a 12 ounce, white pouch. It's labeled with the words “Daily Harvest” at the top with a large “CRUMBLES” immediately below the top, and the words “French Lentil + Leek” in bold.

All lot codes of the product are affected. No other Daily Harvest products were immediately recalled.

"If you experience symptoms including yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice), dark urine, itching with no rash, gastrointestinal illness, nausea, fatigue, body aches, severe abdominal pain and/or fever after consuming this product, please consult with your healthcare provider," the FDA said. "Let your healthcare provider know you have recently consumed the recalled Daily Harvest French Lentil & Leek Crumbles."

In response to an NBC inquiry about the lawsuit, the company said it does not comment on pending or potential litigation. Daily Harvest said it launched the recall immediately after receiving illness reports and repeatedly reached out to customers who bought the crumble product.

On Friday, Daily Harvest said in a blog post it has been conducting exhaustive tests over the last two weeks.

"Despite this, we still have not identified a possible cause. I am sorry that it’s taking as long as it is to pinpoint exactly what may have made people sick. We are deeply committed to finding answers for those impacted. We’re working with top doctors, microbiologists, toxicologists as well as 3 independent labs," founder and CEO Rachel Drori said.

The company said it has ruled out the following:

• Hepatitis A
• Norovirus
• A range of mycotoxins, including aflatoxins
• Food-borne pathogens including Listeria, E.Coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus Aureus (Staph), B.Cereus, and Clostridium Species
• Major allergens including egg, soy, milk, and gluten

"I assure you, we will not stop until we get to the bottom of this. We’re continuing to work in close cooperation with the FDA, CDC and other health agencies," Drori said.