Daughetee v. CHR Hansen, Inc, 5:09-cv-04100

Plaintiffs Deborah and Steven Daughetee, residents of New Mexico, sued butter-flavoring manufacturers Symrise, Firmenich, and Hansen in a diversity action under Iowa law.
Defendants produced diacetyl-containing butter flavorings used in various microwave popcorn brands; Deborah consumed 1–2 bags daily from 1989 to 2004.
Deborah’s consumption spanned brands from General Mills, ConAgra, and American Popcorn, with ACT II Butter Lover’s, Pop Secret, and Orville Redenbacher among the exposures; she stopped popcorn in 2004.
Industry and regulator history showed FEMA, NAS, and NIOSH data linking diacetyl to respiratory injury; industry members had varying safety communications and warnings over time.
The record shows early warnings and safety discussions within FEMA and industry groups, with later NIOSH findings and consumer exposure studies; ConAgra implemented safety measures beginning in 2001, but consumer warnings remained limited through 2004.
The court addresses multiple summary-judgment motions challenging duty to warn, proximate cause, implied warranty, exposure to Symrise butter flavoring in ConAgra popcorn, and punitive damages.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Duty to warn for butter flavorings	Defendants knew or should have known diacetyl risks and owed a duty to warn.	No duty to warn due to lack of foreseeability and because intermediaries/bulk suppliers shared responsibility.	Issues of duty to warn factual; summary judgment denied on foreseeability-based duty.
Intermediary user defense	Defendants couldn’t rely on intermediaries to warn end users.	General Mills and ConAgra were sophisticated users who could warn consumers; defendants could rely on them.	Intermediary defense denied; questions for the jury remain on adequacy of warnings and communication to intermediaries.
Proximate cause for failure to warn	Warning would have altered consumer behavior and prevented or reduced injury.	No causation because warnings were not proximate to Deborah’s injury; post-2000 warnings not causally tied.	Questions of proximate cause reserved for trial; summary judgment denied on causation.
Implied warranty design defect (post-2000 claims)	Implied warranty could be triggered by a defective design or failure to warn.	No reasonable alternative design; post-2000 claims barred or limited.	Partial grant/denial: design-defect portion granted; inadequate-warnings portion remains; post-2000 claims contested.

Mercer v. Pittway Corp., 616 N.W.2d 602 (Iowa 2000) (warnings/defect theory in product liability; foreseeability considerations)
Wright v. Brooke Group, Ltd., 652 N.W.2d 159 (Iowa 2002) (Restatement (Third) products liability adoption; standard for warnings and defects)
Scott v. Dutton-Lainson Co., 774 N.W.2d 501 (Iowa 2009) (clarifies multiple theories may rest on same facts; existence of reasonable design alternatives)
Lovick v. Wil–Rich, 588 N.W.2d 688 (Iowa 1999) (proximate cause and warning causation in product liability)
Thompson v. Kaczinski, 774 N.W.2d 829 (Iowa 2009) (duty and foreseeability guidance in Iowa negligence law)