IOWA CITY, Iowa – Two executives of an Iowa egg company face criminal charges for selling eggs linked to a 2010 outbreak ofSalmonellaenteritidis that sickened 1,500 individuals within a four-month period, according to news reports.


Austin "Jack" DeCoster and his son Peter DeCoster were charged in federal court with introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce which is a misdemeanor. The company, Quality Egg LLC, was charged with bribing a US Department of Agriculture inspector, which is a felony.

The outbreak led to the recall of more than 550 million eggs and Congressional hearings. The Food and Drug Administration also implicated Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms of Iowa, Inc. in the outbreak. The two companies had ties to Quality Egg.