Stinky pig farm lawsuit worries American pork industry - Entrepreneur Generations

"American pork producers could be in trouble, after a North Carolina test case awarded more than $50 million in damages to the neighbors of a hog farm for the nuisance it causes them," David Meyer reports for Fortune.

The 10 plaintiffs who live near Kinlaw Farm complained that the stink was so bad that they couldn't enjoy outdoor activities, had to keep their windows shut, and had health problems like nausea and burning and watery eyes resulting from the smell and flies. Murphy-Brown, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, owns Kinlaw Farm in Bladen County. Smithfield, owned by China's WH Group, is the world's largest pork producer. The jury ordered Murphy-Brown to pay each plaintiff $75,000 in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.

The company says it will appeal, and that "These lawsuits are an outrageous attack on animal agriculture, rural North Carolina and thousands of independent family farmers who own and operate contract farms. These farmers are apparently not safe from attack even if they fully comply with all federal, state and local laws and regulations," Meyer reports.

This case was considered a trial balloon and could be used as a precedent in upcoming cases with similar complaints. The same lawyers that represented the plaintiffs in this case will be involved in another case next month. Other pig farm nuisance cases are scheduled for later this year, Meyer reports.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/2r1DStC Stinky pig farm lawsuit worries American pork industry - Entrepreneur Generations

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