Report: Chemical releases possible at Joplin plant

JOPLIN, Mo. -- Federal investigators who visited a Mars Petcare plant near Joplin found potential dangers to the health of employees, but the plant was closed before a follow-up visit could be arranged.

Eight former workers at the plant, which made dry pet food, sued Mars last year, alleging they were exposed to a fumigant that caused them to become ill. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health investigators visited the plant in December 2012.

A report from the 2012 visit said the team found evidence of airborne dust in the mill rooms and in other operations at the plant, which manufactured dry pet food. It found excessive airborne mold and one of the pet food ingredients had the potential to release "diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione into the air under certain circumstances." Diacetyl in food flavorings was linked to a rare lung disease found in nine former workers at a microwave popcorn plant in Jasper.

The NIOSH team planned to return to the Mars Petcare plant in August 2013 for a medical survey of workers because of "our concerns for possible occupational lung disease" but the survey was canceled when the plant closed.

The lawsuit filed in Jasper County Circuit Court by eight former workers alleges they were exposed to a fumigant -- phosphine gas -- that injured their eyes, lungs, respiratory systems and internal organs. They seek unspecified actual and punitive damages. No trial date has been set.

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Information from: The Joplin (Mo.) Globe, http://www.joplinglobe.com