Dive Brief:
- The Environmental Protection Agency confirmed it is conducting a criminal investigation into Tyson Foods in connection with a fish kill in Missouri.
- Under federal law, the company could face criminal charges if it knowingly and intentionally violated environmental laws at its plant in Monnett, MO.
- The state of Missouri has already filed a six-count lawsuit against Tyson in connection with the incident, where a supplement called Alimet entered the town's sewage system, crippling it and sending pure ammonia into a nearby creek, which poisoned more than 100,000 fish.
Dive Insight:
Tyson and the EPA have confirmed the probe, but have not given many details. The EPA issued a search warrant last month, but the warrant is sealed.
Missouri's attorney general said earlier that he believed negligence was involved in the incident, but he did not have enough evidence to bring criminal charges. We'll have to wait and see if the EPA can find something that he could not.