Maker of Yummy Vat-Grown Fungus Sued Over "Dangerous Reactions"
The food-safety watchdogs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest report that an Arizona woman is suing the makers of Quorn, a meat substitute made from vat-grown fungus. According to the CPSI, the company does not disclose "the fact that some people have serious allergic reactions to the main ingredient in its Quorn line of meat substitutes." The lead plaintiff in the class-action suit, Kathy Cardinale, says that she became violently ill when eating Quorn's Chik'n Patties. "I felt like the soles of my feet were going to come out of my mouth, I was vomiting so hard," she said.
The CSPI says that it has received reports from more than a thousand people that "they have suffered adverse reactions, including nausea, violent vomiting, uncontrollable diarrhea, and even life-threatening anaphylactic reactions after eating the patties, cutlets, tenders and other products made with Quorn's fungus."
David Wilson, managing director of Quorn, discounts the claims and says the lawsuit is frivolous. "Quorn has been in the U.S. market since 2002 and has been enjoyed by millions of Americans. We have developed our labeling with the Food and Drug Administration and it is accurate and fair," Wilson told the Los Angeles Times. The fungus that Quorn is made from was discovered in the U.K. in the 1960s.
"In the 1960s, people were concerned that we would run out of protein and started a search for new protein sources that could feed the world and discovered this fungus that grows naturally in soil," said Wilson. "It makes a delicious and nutritious meat alternative."
We can't comment on the CSPI's claims, but we would like to point out that the world actually hasn't run out of protein. Also — and we know we may be going out on a limb here — there may just be some more appetizing alternatives out there to vat-grown fungus.
Makers of Quorn, the Chicken-Flavored Fungus, Sued for Not Disclosing Dangerous Reactions [CPSI]
Lawsuits target chicken and its veggie substitutes [LA Times]
(Photo: Stacy Greene, CPSI)
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Comments:
Could we have used the word "fungus" any more frequently in this post? All I ate for lunch was a salad and I still feel ready to puke.
Quorn is people!
So is this like a mushroom burger of sorts?
I had no idea such a product existed. Is this popular somewhere?
@summerbee: Did your salad have mushrooms on it? If so, there's a fungus among you! (don't kill the joker...please? :) )
This sounds like the most disgusting thing I've ever heard of. But....portobello mushrooms are a fungus. And they are AWESOME.
In Europe it is very popular as a meat substitute basically if you think of Morningstar Products or Bocca it is similar but with Fungi not Soy. I have eaten it several times without any problems. Most of the major supermarkets around here carry it.
Quorn is actually quite a good product, similar to (but much better than) soy substitutes. It's very nutritious, low in fat, and high in protein. And tasty. Consumerist, it's totally unfair to characterize it as some thing "icky".
Sure, very rarely someone will have an allergic reaction. But that goes for pretty much any food. Unless the rate or likelihood is unusually high (and there's no evidence of this), this is a total non-issue, and a frivolous lawsuit.
Well if the chicks in a grinder made you want to go vegetarian, 'vat-grown fungus' is likely to make you opt for an all-meat diet... The pendulum swings...
Would you like a white, petrified trilobite or salty, sweet bacon?
Its a strange fact that sensitivities to mushrooms, even common wild and domestic varieties, vary widely from person to person. I guess they should put that on Quorns label.
"I felt like the soles of my feet were going to come out of my mouth, I was vomiting so hard," she said.
I'm laughing my ass off!!!
I know, I'm wrong.
@katstermonster: I would imagine it tastes kind of terrible, especially if you like real meat. I've had Morningstar, though. It has a really strange texture that I don't like. My roommate and I ate it for about two weeks and switched back to real meat.
I'm still trying to wrap my mind around "I thought that the soles of my feet were going to come out of my mouth"
@zarex42: Does it list what the ingredients are? shouldn't people know most of their allergies if they are that bad? what happens if I don't know that I'm allergic to peanuts and I eat a peanut butter granola bar, knowing that the peanut butter is there, and I get sick? can I sue then?
yeah I don't think they should be sued. they will be though.
...while I am not giving anyone a free pass on this, it reminds me of the plight of an aunt of mine...
Waaaaay back in the day, Nutrasweet sent out gumballs to unsuspecting victims, I mean consumers, before the product was brought to market - looking for feedback on what they thought of the sugar substitute.
My aunt gleefully chewed the gumball, only to suffer a very painful headache. Thereby deciding she was allergic to Nutrasweet.
She contacted the company telling them of her plight.
...and ever since, any time anything with Nutrasweet shows up, she is compelled to regale her tale of woe, always ending with "I don't understand how they can possibly bring a product to market when it does things like that to people!"
And don't bother trying to talk to her about the fact that clearly, the VAST majority of humans on the planet categorically do not have any problem ingesting Nutrasweet. Or the fact that, you know, there's probably more people who are allergic to natural foods than are allergic to Nutrasweet. No, if there's any chance - ANY CHANCE AT ALL - that a product might produce an ill effect in one person, somewhere, then obviously that product should be banned.
Ugh.
"In the 1960s, people were concerned that we would run out of protein and started a search for new protein sources that could feed the world and discovered this fungus that grows naturally in soil," said Wilson. "It makes a delicious and nutritious meat alternative."
Huh??? People thought all the cows, chickens, pigs, ducks, lambs and other animals would vanish??? What kind of LSD were they on o_0
How is this different than any other type of food allergy?
Does it really have to display an FDA-level disclaimer to the effect: "Do not use this product if you are allergic to any ingredient."?
Unless this contains a common allergen, I don't see how they could particularly be in trouble.
Soylent tofu?
Most of our meat substitutes here (Canada) are just varieties of textured soy/vegetable protein.
@zarex42: I agree, Qourn is yummy and I've never heard of anyone I know getting sick from it. But without the snarky commentary, most of the content on this site could be found on Google news. I guess I don't take myself seriously enough to care if people think the food I eat is icky, I think they're favorite color is ugly anyway.
@pecan 3.14159265: Yeah, its probably one of those things. Not too bad in itself, but if you think of it as a substitute for something else - it sucks.
Like The Matrix sequels. And tofu.
I've eaten their products before, and they are very, very good. A bit expensive, but still, very good.
@The Porkchop Express: Well, it's a fungus that was discovered by scientists, so I'd say that aside from fillers and binders, that's the only ingredient. They're required by law to list them on the label, but I assume that this fungus isn't used in other products, so someone wouldn't know that he/she is allergic until the puking of soles of feet commenced. And since it's just a random foot item, there would have been no reason to test for it. IANAL, but I think this suit may get thrown out, and I hope it does. New ingredients will be introduced to the market in the future, and as long as they're not outright unsafe, you just can't account for people's allergies. Unfortunate, but true.
I've eaten Quorn before and thought it was really good for phony meat. CSPI has had it out for Quorn since it entered the market, but they try to kill off anything that's awesome anyway.
@zarex42: Um no. Those kinds of reactions to a food are not your typical food allergy. Those are pretty severe and 1000 reported is a big number. Considering this is not a widely consumed product and only a fraction of the people who had a problem ever file a complaint with the CPSI.
Food should not make people violently ill, clearly this one does in enough numbers to warrant review.
@MostlyHarmless: I actually really like tofu. I used to hate it, but now I like it, if it's cooked properly. The fried, crispy tofu I see in Asian markets, now that is good stuff.
@bloggerX: It was a reaction to nuclear winter, when all crops and animals die off, and you have to be able to raise your food in vats. Algae and fungi are about all you're left with.
Fungus? What could possibly go wrong?
And I have to add...
Quorn is made of people! It's people I tell ya!!!
I'm a meat eater and I love Quorn. Their chik'n patties are great. This is no different than any other mushroom. When you describe it as vat grown of course it sounds bad. but we don't market portabello mushrooms as manure grown even though they are.
This was definitely an episode of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica.
Don't people read the ingredients list before eating things?
Anyway it seems like something that would be hard to prove, since it could have been something else she ate.
@bohemian: peanuts, shrimp, crab meat, gluten. I can eat em all, friends and family members have issues with one, a few or even all of them. Tons of people have reactions to a lot of things. Sure it should be looked into, but I don't think it is an "unsafe" food.
@katstermonster: Yeah, I know people may not know they are allergic to it. That doesn't mean the company should know.
@HiPwr: I'm not a hippie, just a regular vegetarian and I really like it. It's a great chicken substitute. The use of the word "fungus" makes it sounds gross. It's basically made of mushrooms.
@bohemian:
Nonsense. These are very typical reactions to food allergies, and there are many kinds of allergies out there. 1000 is a minuscule number, and it's actually a pretty widely used product. The only reason they're more susceptible to a lawsuit is because it's more "unique" (i.e. one source).
@pecan 3.14159265: I make a 'chicken' salad with Quorn and more than once have had meat eaters swear I used real chicken.
@HiPwr: Quorn is the default vegetarian option in most fast food restaurants in the U.K. It really does taste and feel like meat on your palate. It's not a hippie option, because it does raise the specter of animal flesh.
@katstermonster: Its texture is exactly like meat. In a bolognese, you could not tell the difference, aside from the price.
@The Porkchop Express: Huh? I'm not sure what you're saying. The company can put a warning on the label that says "Contains X ingredient, which may be an allergen," but that doesn't change the fact that it's such an uncommon ingredient that people won't know they're allergic until they know. Should the company put a warning? Absolutely. Will it change anything? In this case, probably not.
Many people have food allergies, and often they are unpleasant. But this is like me trying to sue a toothpaste company because the bastards used cinnamon oil and I had an allergic reaction. Actually, I'd have a better shot than she does, because at least the cinnamon oil wasn't on the ingredients list (not that they are required by law to do so).
That said, there do seem to be a lot of people who are very allergic to this stuff, so perhaps a warning on the box might be appropriate. I dunno.
@YouDidWhatNow?: Explain that to the few people that do get really severe reactions to these additives. One of our kids gets screaming headaches and projectile vomiting from Splenda. After a few bad incidents we tracked it back to what he ate. Even knowing this he still ended up making himself sick because things with Splenda are not always clearly marked. He bought a flavored water at a convenience store that had it in it and no indication on the front label that it even might have an artificial sweetener in it. He's now an avid label reader.
I'm sorry that people suffered bad reactions to this, but I'm not sure why the maker of the product is responsible for letting you know you might be allergic to it. But if you eat something you've never eaten before, isn't there always going to be a chance you're allergic to it?
Also, things that lots of people are allergic to don't have to have warnings on the packaging.
@bloggerX: I am, too. Don't feel bad. It's a great way of putting it, and I think the humor was intended.
Quorn is awesome. I don't mind fungus grown in vats when it tastes that good, and I guess you don't mind chickens raised in their own feces.
@Coelacanth: For common food allergens foods that contain them have to put that substance in bold print below the ingredient label. "This product contains shellfish" or "This product made in a facility that also manufactures peanuts".
So there is a presidence for alerting people to allergens.
That's what they get for not eating real food.