Mediator Named In Birds Eye Foods Suit

A well-respected Grand Rapids lawyer has been appointed mediator in a lawsuit by property owners who say groundwater has been contaminated by Birds Eye fruit cannery in western Michigan.

FENNVILLE, Mich. (AP) — A well-respected Grand Rapids lawyer has been appointed mediator in a lawsuit by property owners who say groundwater has been contaminated by a fruit cannery in western Michigan.

Jon Muth will bring together lawyers for the plaintiffs and Birds Eye Foods. The company for decades sprayed wastewater onto fields in the Fennville area, 50 miles southwest of Grand Rapids. The cannery produces fruit fillings, sauces and glazes.

Muth's job as mediator will be to look at the facts and encourage the parties to settle the dispute.

Birds Eye in 2010 announced plans for a new treatment system. A lawsuit pending in federal court says the company should have known about the dangers of spraying wastewater laced with chemicals on area fields.

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