Walmart
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Taking but not baking a loaf of take-and-bake bread reportedly landed a Colorado man in the hospital.
Jordan Douglas is suing Walmart after he ate underbaked bread purchased from a Colorado Springs location, unaware that he needed to bake it himself. He claims that a store-generated “sell by” sticker obscured the “bake at home” label and preparation instructions on the bread’s packaging.
“The bread appeared substantially baked and indistinguishable from ready-to-eat bread products,” reads the lawsuit filed in El Paso County District Court on Tuesday, February 3.
But after eating the bread, the uncooked dough expanded inside of Douglas, he alleges, resulting in a gastrointestinal obstruction. Douglas was hospitalized for three days with severe pain and vomiting, according to the lawsuit.
The bread in question was purchased on September 22 from the Walmart at 1575 Space Center Drive in Colorado Springs, according to the lawsuit. The exact loaf is not specified, though it is noted that it was a Marketside take-and-bake manufactured by Anthony & Sons Italian Bakery, which is also a defendant in the lawsuit.
Images of Marketside bread loaves on Walmart’s website show “bake at home” in small text below an oven illustration, including how many minutes it takes to bake. No additional preparation instructions appear to be present on the packaging.
“Walmart owed a duty to exercise reasonable care in the labeling, merchandising, and sale of food products to consumers,” the lawsuit reads. “Walmart breached that duty. …The bread product was in a defective condition, unreasonably dangerous to consumers when placed into the stream of commerce.”
Douglas’s lawyer, Jeffrey Scott Lasswell, declined to comment on Douglas’s current condition or to provide photos of the packaging that was obscured by the “sell by” label.
“Because this case is in its early stages and remains in active litigation, I am not able to comment on specific facts, medical information, or evidence,” Lasswell says. “The allegations and claims are set forth in the public court filings, which speak for themselves, and I will address the merits of the case through the judicial process rather than in the media.”
Douglas is suing for unspecified compensatory damages, plus court costs. The lawsuit alleges that he suffered “substantial medical expenses, lost wages, physical pain, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life” due to the ordeal.
Walmart did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the lawsuit.
