Braintree Couple Sues Whole Foods After Son's Death
BRAINTREE (CBS) - A Braintree family has filed a lawsuit in the death of their 8-year old son, Joshua, who died from E. Coli. Andrew and Melissa Kaye are suing Whole Foods, where they bought the ground beef, and Rain Crow Ranch that supplied the meat.
They say the companies need to be held responsible for selling contaminated beef.
Over the summer, health inspectors linked three cases of E. Coli in Massachusetts to ground beef sold at the Whole Foods in South Weymouth and Newton. The chain issued a recall in mid-August.
The Kayes argue the recall should have been issued before Joshua became sick in early July. "Even before Josh had gone into the hospital there had been an illness cluster tied to Whole Foods and grass-fed beef," said Andrew Kaye.
They also say the chain put others at risk by delaying the recall for weeks after Joshua's death.
In a statement Whole Foods said in part, "Our thorough and ongoing investigation of the circumstances has not shown any clear link to our business."
Rain Crow Ranch said in part, "It is our understanding that testing conclusively establishes that the meat we provided was not contaminated with E.Coli."
"They need to make changes. This shouldn't be happening. This is the result of sloppy processing," said Melissa Kaye.
"He lived 10% of his life and it's up to us to fill-in the other 90% and to do the wonderful things he would have done in his life and in his name," said Andrew Kaye.
The family has started the Joshua Kaye Foundation, a 501C charity. The group's first action item is to install a solar-powered greenhouse at Joshua's former school so agriculture will be built into the curriculum.
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