Jan. 16, 2013
A Bloomington-based winery has filed an Indiana Defective Product lawsuit against packaging company Ball Metal Container, after finding the containers produced by the company did not perform as they were supposed to. According to an article from WBIW News, the lawsuit alleges breach of contract and negligence.
In Nov. 2011, Oliver Wine Company began to look into expanding its line of Beanblossom Cider, and contacted Ball as a potential supplier of the aluminum cans needed to package the product. Ball asked that the winery send them a sample of each cider so they could be tested for compatibility with the cans.
After receiving confirmation from Ball that Oliver’s products would work with the packaging, Oliver Wine Company placed an order for 1.3 million cans and began packaging the Beanblossom Ciders. However, shortly after shipping several orders out, reports of an odor when the cans were opened began to roll in.
Further testing confirmed that a chemical reaction between the cider and the copper pitting in the cans was producing hydrogen sulfide. The lawsuit claims that Ball changed its stance on the compatibility of the products after learning of the problem.
The Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers with Stewart and Stewart Injury Lawyers are hopeful that a decision in the case will bring a sense of closure to the incident for the two businesses and will create safer products for all citizens.