ATLANTA – The peanut processing company at the heart of a national salmonella outbreak has filed for bankruptcy.
The Virginia-based Peanut Corp. of America filed Friday for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in bankruptcy court in Lynchburg, Va.
The company said in the filing that its debt and assets both ranged between $1 million and $10 million.
The salmonella outbreak was traced to one of the company's plants in Blakely, Ga., where inspectors found roaches, mold and a leaking roof.
A second plant in Texas was shuttered this week. The outbreak has resulted in more than 500 illnesses, led to one of the nation's biggest recalls and caused as many as nine deaths.
The government is working on a criminal investigation into the case, and several lawsuits have been filed.
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