[3] 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.
[4] In January 2009, the company issued a statement categorically denying the allegations;[5][6][7] in that same month, it shut down production and laid off 50 employees at the Blakely plant.
[11] 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.
[11] In January 2006, Nestlé completed an onsite audit of PCA's Plainview, Texas plant, and gave it a "Does Not Meet Standards" score on nearly all 40 inspection areas.
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.
[26][27] (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.
[25][33] 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.
One employee remembered seeing a family of baby mice in a tote of peanuts, and others recalled having to step over standing water inside the building after heavy rain.
"[42] Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspectors reported, following a two-week inspection of the Blakely, Georgia, plant in January 2009, that the company had information that its peanut-butter products were tainted with Salmonella, but shipped them anyway after "retesting" them.
[54] Documents released February 11 by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee showed that the company shipped products to customers even before receiving results of Salmonella tests, and selectively chose laboratiries to mask contamination.
The plant failed his private inspection each time for what he called "just filthy" conditions, including dusty beams, leaky roofs, and birds flying through the building.
[39] The Gorman operations transferred to Plainview when Hale County officials issued $2 million in tax-free revenue bonds to help the company convert a long vacant Jimmy Dean sausage factory into a peanut plant.
The plant was located along a major highway, across from a large Wal-Mart distribution center; it had four highly visible signs in the front and a billboard bearing a picture of a peanut.
[citation needed] The plant had been certified for organic production in November 2005, based on what state officials later called incomplete information obtained by an inspector with the Texas Department of Agriculture.
[44][70][71][72] On February 4, Georgia officials said they would not prosecute the company, because the two state laws under consideration (reckless conduct and adulteration of food) were only misdemeanors and would only allow for minor penalties.
[86][88] Both Daniel Kilgore and Samuel Lightsey (both former plant managers at PCA) pleaded guilty on their related charges and became government witnesses in the case, providing testimony during the 2014 trial, for consideration of limited sentencing.
[101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][excessive citations] On February 13, 2009, less than 24 hours after the Texas recall, Peanut Corporation of America announced it was permanently halting operations and filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Bankruptcy lawyer Andrew Goldstein said that the company had considered filing for Chapter 11, but decided to liquidate because all of its plants had been shut down and there was no way it could carry on business.