09-09-2026

The bacteria-tainted apple that probably killed Shirlee Frey traveled hundreds of miles from an orchard to a packinghouse and then to a factory that coated it in caramel. It never came anywhere close to being examined or tested by a food-safety inspector.

By the time Cheri Markos received a letter from Kellogg’s warning her not to eat the peanut butter sandwich crackers she’d purchased at Costco, the snacks were long gone. She’d already eaten them or given them away to friends.