Cozy Valley raw milk e coli outbreak.jpgToday Marler Clark filed a lawsuit against the Cozy Valley Creamery stemming from a 5 year old girls’s E. coli O157:H7 infection.  Following the announcement of the outbreak by the Washington State Department of Health, Cozy Vale Creamery recalled raw milk products with sell-by dates of December 6, 2011 or earlier. The Cozy Vale Creamery’s whole and skim milk and cream are distributed at retail outlets in Pierce, Thurston and King Counties in Western Washington state. The milk products are sold in pint, quart, half-gallon, and gallon containers.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture conducted tests at the Cozy Vale Creamery during the E. coli outbreak investigation.  The test results indicated E. coli O157:H7 contamination in the milking parlor and processing areas.  The unique genetic strain of the pathogen was a match to the genetic strain that infected at least three children in Pierce and Thurston counties.