Great Michigan Pizza Funeral

[1][2] The manufacturer, Ilario "Mario" Fabbrini,[3] had been ordered to recall the pizzas by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after initial tests suggested the presence of botulism-causing bacteria in a batch of canned mushrooms.

The pizzas were tipped into an 18-foot (5.5 m) deep hole in the ground before a crowd of onlookers, who were addressed by Michigan governor William Milliken.

Having lived under fascist Italian rule and then in communist Yugoslavia, he emigrated to the United States after World War II.

[4] In January 1973, employees at the United Canning Company of East Palestine, Ohio, noticed several cans of mushrooms were swelling, indicating contamination.

[4][6][7] The plant had recently switched to an automated can-filling line, which was less sterile than the previous method of hand-filling, and also led to some overfilling of the cans.

[7][1] The customers of United Canning were contacted by the FDA, including Tolono Pizza Products, a Chicago wholesaler who had sold the mushrooms to Fabbrini.

[7] After the burial, Fabbrini laid a wreath of red gladioli and white carnations on the grave, which a report in Atlas Obscura claims represented the colors of pizza sauce and cheese.

[11][6] The event was attended by Michigan governor William Milliken who gave a homily on the subject of courage in the face of tragedy.

[13] Although he stated he did not blame his suppliers and would continue to use them, Fabbrini launched a Million dollar ($1,000,000) lawsuit against United Canning and Tolono Pizza Products.