Campbell has fired an executive who allegedly branded the soup company’s products for “poor people” and denigrated its Indian employees.
Martin Bally, who was Campbell’s vice president of information technology, was recorded by another employee making the alleged comment.
Campbell – who began producing canned condensed soup in 1897, and whose cans feature in some of Andy Warhol’s most famous Pop artworks of the 1960s – said he had reviewed the recording and believed the voice to be Bally’s.
According to the wrongful dismissal lawsuit filed by Garza, Bally allegedly told a former employee, Robert Garza, that Campbell made “highly processed food” and “crap for poor people.”
In an hour-long speech broadcast by a Michigan TV station, Bally said: “Who buys our shit? I don’t buy Campbell’s products anymore. It’s not healthy anymore because I know what the fuck is in it… bioengineered meat.
“I don’t want to eat a piece of chicken that came from a 3D printer.”
Reportedly referring to Campbell’s employees of Indian heritage, Bally said: “Fucking Indians don’t know anything… like they can’t think for themselves.”
Garza, who was a security analyst at Campbell, told a local news outlet that when he met with Bally to discuss his salary and felt something was not right, he recorded Bally. He is now suing the company for unfair dismissal and alleging that Bally made racist comments, admitted to being under the influence of drugs at work and retaliated when Garza tried to complain about him.
Campbell’s – which rebranded last year, dropping “Soup” from its name to reflect a move to sell more snack foods – apologized for the “hurt” caused by Bally’s comments, which it described as “vulgar, offensive and false”.
Campbell said in a statement that Bally had been fired, adding: “This behavior does not reflect our values and our company culture, and we will not tolerate that kind of language under any circumstances.”
Campbell rejected Bally’s allegation that the chicken used in its soup was “bioengineered”, and described the comments about its food as “not only wrong – they are patently absurd”.
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The company said, “The chicken meat in our soups comes from long-trusted, USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) approved American suppliers and meets our high quality standards. All of our soups are made with chicken meat without any antibiotics. Any claims to the contrary are completely false.”
New Jersey-based Campbell’s can trace its history back more than 150 years. In recent times, it has expanded its product line to include more snacks and owns brands including Kettle Brands, maker of V8 drinks, Prego sauce and Kettle chips.
Bally has been contacted for comment.
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