A mother in Florida is suing the Campbell Co. and Walmart after saying she found moving parasites in a can of SpaghettiOs that she shared with her daughter.
Mary Hubbard, along with Gregory Lovell, the father of the child, filed the lawsuit Tuesday.
According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Hubbard purchased Campbell’s SpaghettiOs in June 2024 at a Walmart Supercenter in Okeechobee, Florida.
Hubbard opened the can to serve it to herself and her child, the lawsuit said. After consuming portions of the soup, Hubbard noticed what “appeared to be worms and/or parasites moving in the food,” the complaint states, adding that the contents “clearly depict worm-like organisms moving within the food product.”
Hubbard states in the complaint that she was able to take physical evidence and made a video documenting the wormlike organisms in the soup.
Due to the alleged contamination, Hubbard claims the health impacts were severe. She says she suffered serious and permanent injuries, including a parasitic infection, gastroenteritis and more.
Hubbard says she continues to seek medical care for these conditions. The daughter, who is a minor and whose age is not specified, allegedly suffered abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and a parasitic infection that required prescription medication.
The lawsuit says Campbell and Walmart failed to inspect and process their canned foods properly and continued to distribute the product. The lawsuit also alleges that the companies failed to maintain adequate safety measures to prevent parasitic contamination during manufacturing or while the product was on retail shelves.
The pair is seeking $75,000 in damages from Campbell and Walmart, claiming the companies were negligent and violated a federal food safety law.
Walmart responded to NBC News in a statement, saying, “The health and safety of our customers is a top priority. We are reviewing the complaint and will respond appropriately to the court.”
In April 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a health alert for various soup and bowl products due to possible extraneous material contamination.
Four Campbell’s soups were included on the list, with the agency stating the products may have been contaminated with foreign material — “specifically wood, [and] an FDA-regulated ingredient, cilantro,” according to the release.
“We do not comment on pending litigation, but we believe the claims to be without merit, and we intend to vigorously defend against these allegations,” Campbell said in a statement.
