Publix fruit infected a South Florida couple in E. coli outbreak, lawsuit says
Publix frozen fruit linked to an E. coli outbreak infected an octogenarian couple, putting the wife into a hospital and a nursing home for 28 days, according to a Palm Beach County lawsuit.
Roberta Cash and Oscar Cash’s lawsuit, the first filed against Publix connected to this outbreak, accuses the Lakeland-based supermarket behemoth of negligence and says it has strict liability.
“There was a marketing defect in the product when it left (Publix’s) possession and control,” said the lawsuit filed by Pinellas County attorney Elizabeth Zweibel with Ron Simon & Associates out of Houston. “The product was defective because it contained E. coli and (Publix) failed to give adequate warnings of the product’s dangers that were known or by the application of reasonably developed human skill and foresight should have been known.
“(Publix) also failed to give adequate warnings and instructions to avoid such dangers. (Publix’s) failure to provide such warnings and instructions rendered the product unreasonably dangerous.”
Publix, which usually declines to comment on a pending case, hasn’t returned a request for comment.
The U.S. Food and Drug Association’s July 6 update on the outbreak says the Florida Department of Health notified the CDC on July 1 about a “cluster of E. coli O145 illnesses.” On July 3, Chilean company Frutas y Hortalizas del Sur S.A. recalled one lot of GreenWise Organic Whole Blueberries. With the recall announcement, Publix added its own recommendation for customers to dump or return any GreenWise Organic Whole Blueberries bought before July 3.
READ MORE: Publix fruit at center of E. coli outbreak investigations, FDA and CDC say
At the latest CDC update, the outbreak has infected 11 people in Florida and one in Georgia.
E. coli O145:H28 is a Shiga toxin-producing form of E. coli. That means it’s more likely to cause hemolytic uremic syndrome or HUS, a form of kidney failure that can make E. coli a deadly problem.
E. coli’s worst effects usually hit children under 5 and adults over 65 years old. Roberta Cash, 88, and Oscar Cash, 89, married for 46 years, bought the now-recalled blueberries in May 2026 at the Jupiter Farms Village strip mall Publix at 10142 Indiantown Rd. in unincorporated Palm Beach County.
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“Soon thereafter, Roberta began to experience the symptoms of E. coli, including bloody stools, abdominal pain, stomach cramps, dehydration, and fever,” the lawsuit said. “After a few days of ongoing symptoms, Oscar decided to take Roberta to the Jupiter Medical Center ER, where she was hospitalized and aggressively treated for 10 days.”
After those 10 days, doctors transferred her to The Gardens Court nursing home and rehabilitation center in Palm Beach Gardens. The lawsuit said she remained at The Gardens Court for another 18 days.
Meanwhile, Oscar Cash began dealing with the bloody poop, stomachaches and fever that E. coli brings.
“He elected to try to recover from his illness without extensive medical treatment, while spending all of his waking hours taking care of Roberta,” the lawsuit said. “Once Roberta was cleared to return home safely, he took over her daily care, with assistance from ongoing visits by rehabilitation professionals.”
