This week, Mary Ann Bliesner, the 83-year-old former president and primary owner of Valley Processing Inc. (VPI) pleaded guilty to charges related to the manufacture and sale of tainted fruit juice products in violation of federal food safety laws. Bliesner operated a now-shuttered fruit juice facility in Sunnyside, Washington.
During an FDA inspection in May 2018, VPI employees used caution tape to prevent investigators from entering a room at Bliesner's Grape Road Facility in Washington that held concrete storage vats. The workers told FDA investigators that the facility was unsafe to enter and contained no juice or juice products. Not only did that room store juice, but it was often old unsold grape juice concentrate, sometimes held for years in large concrete vats that were not properly covered or cooled, according to the Department of Justice.
Investigators learned about the vats and, when they entered the room, found grape juice concentrate that testing later confirmed to be contaminated with bird and rodent feces, fur, insects, decaying remains of animals, mold, yeast and other contaminants. FDA inspectors even saw a live rat walking across the hardened crust that had formed on top of the grape juice concentrate.
Most Read on IEN:
In November 2020, the government filed a complaint to stop VPI from making any juice products. In January 2021, Bliesner agreed to an injunction and VPI shut its doors. In September 2022, a federal grand jury indicted Bliesner and VPI on 12 counts of fraud and food safety crimes.
Bliesner pleaded guilty to multiple crimes, and admitted to conspiring to distribute tainted and potentially unsafe apple and grape juice to customers in the U.S. and abroad from October 2012 to June 2019, nearly seven years.
VPI admitted that it blended grape juice concentrate that was stored outside for years and exposed to the elements, with newer grape juice concentrate, and sold the resulting blended grape juice product to unsuspecting customers as if it were a new product.
VPI even sold some of this contaminated product to customers who provided grape juice for the National School Lunch Program, which gives kids free or reduced-cost lunches.
Bliesner and VPI agreed to pay $742,139 as a criminal forfeiture. Bliesner and VPI will face a sentencing hearing on March 26, 2025. She was originally looking at 20 years, but a federal judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Click here to subscribe to our daily newsletter featuring breaking manufacturing industry news.
WEBVTT
X-TIMESTAMP-MAP=LOCAL:00:00:00.000,MPEGTS:0
00:00.200 --> 00:06.000
This week Mary Anne Bleisner, the 83 year old
former president and primary owner of Valley
00:06.000 --> 00:11.720
Processing Inc, pleaded guilty to charges
related to the manufacture and sale of tainted
00:11.720 --> 00:15.920
fruit juice products in violation of federal
food safety laws.
00:16.120 --> 00:19.645
Bleisner.
Operated a now shuttered fruit juice facility
00:19.645 --> 00:24.344
in Sunnyside, Washington during an FDA
inspection in May 2018,
00:24.545 --> 00:30.235
VPI employees used caution tape to prevent
investigators from entering a room at
00:30.235 --> 00:33.264
Bleisner's Grape Road facility in Washington.
00:33.639 --> 00:39.220
It held concrete storage vats.
The workers told FDA investigators that the
00:39.220 --> 00:43.900
facility was unsafe to enter and contained no
juice or juice products.
00:44.060 --> 00:49.860
Not only did that room store juice, but it was
often old unsold grape juice concentrate.
00:50.520 --> 00:56.840
Sometimes held for years in large concrete vats
that were not properly covered or cooled.
00:57.119 --> 01:01.750
Well, investigators learned about the vats, and
when they entered the room,
01:02.080 --> 01:07.730
they found grape juice concentrate that testing
later confirmed to be contaminated with bird
01:07.730 --> 01:14.190
and rodent feces, fur, insects, decaying
remains of animals.
01:14.321 --> 01:20.952
Old yeast, and other contaminants.
FDA inspectors even saw a live rat
01:20.952 --> 01:27.882
walking across the hardened crust that had
formed on top of the grape juice concentrate.
01:28.211 --> 01:33.472
About 2.5 years later, the government filed a
complaint to stop VPI from making any juice
01:33.472 --> 01:36.952
products.
In January 2021, Bleisner agreed to an
01:36.952 --> 01:39.664
injunction in VPI.
Shut its doors.
01:39.744 --> 01:46.664
In September 2022, a federal grand jury
indicted Bleisner and VPI on 12 counts of fraud
01:46.664 --> 01:50.624
and food safety crimes.
Bleisner pleaded guilty to multiple crimes and
01:50.624 --> 01:55.823
admitted to conspiring to distribute tainted
and potentially unsafe apple and grape juice to
01:55.823 --> 02:01.744
customers in the US and abroad from October
2012 to June 2019,
02:01.944 --> 02:05.856
nearly.
7 years VPI admitted that it blended grape
02:05.856 --> 02:11.776
juice concentrate that was stored outside for
years and exposed to the elements with newer
02:11.776 --> 02:16.815
grape juice concentrate and sold the resulting
blended product to unsuspecting customers as if
02:16.815 --> 02:20.645
it were new.
VPI even sold some of this contaminated product
02:20.856 --> 02:25.046
to customers who provided grape juice for the
national school lunch program,
02:25.255 --> 02:28.638
which provides free or reduced.
Cost lunches to kids.
02:28.807 --> 02:35.438
Bleisner and VPI agreed to pay $742,139 as a
criminal
02:35.438 --> 02:39.287
forfeiture.
Bleisner and VPI will face a sentencing hearing
02:39.287 --> 02:43.917
on March 26, 2025.
She was originally looking at 20 years,
02:44.098 --> 02:49.048
but a federal judge will determine any sentence
after considering the US sentencing guidelines
02:49.048 --> 02:51.117
and other statutory factors.
02:51.367 --> 02:53.998
I'm David Manti.
This is manufacturing now.
02:54.690 --> 02:56.649
And Merry Christmas.
