USA TODAY’s Mike Snyder reports on the Campbell soup controversy
“Fucking poor people is outrageous,” a Campbell’s Company executive was allegedly recorded saying, saying the company’s food was for “poor people.”
Campbell’s Co. said it has fired an executive who called its products “highly” processed foods for “poor people.”
Martin Barry, the company’s vice president of information technology, is recorded as making this comment during a November 2024 meeting with Robert Garza, the company’s former cybersecurity analyst. Garza, who made the audio recording, alleges in a racial discrimination and racial harassment lawsuit filed Nov. 20 in Michigan’s Wayne County Circuit Court that he was wrongfully fired in January.
“We have a (expletive) word for the poor,” a voice on the recording (which Campbells now claims is Barry) says, a copy of which was shared with USA TODAY. “(Expletive) I hardly ever buy Campbell products anymore.”
The person also said that when he looked at a can of Campbell’s soup, he thought it contained “bioengineered meat.”
Campbell’s says executives’ comments are ‘vile, offensive and false’
Campbells said in a statement on November 26: “After investigation, we believe that the voice recorded is in fact Mr Martin Barry. The comments were vile, offensive and false and we apologize for any hurt caused. This behavior does not reflect our values or our culture and we do not tolerate such language under any circumstances. As of November 25, Mr Barry is no longer employed by the company.”
The company said it did not listen to any recordings of Garza and Barry’s conversations until it learned of the lawsuit on Nov. 20. “Neither Mr. Garza nor his attorney informed us of the existence of any audio recordings,” said James Regan, Campbell’s director of external communications, in a statement to USA TODAY.
Garza alleges in his lawsuit that he was fired on Jan. 30 due to accusations of racial discrimination and racial harassment, among other reasons. Barry and J.D. Opal are listed on Campbell’s LinkedIn page as Campbell’s director of cybersecurity operations and are named as defendants in the lawsuit, along with Campbell. Garza claims they were responsible for his termination, created a hostile work environment and violated his civil rights.
Garza is seeking damages for emotional, economic and non-economic damages, including stress, humiliation, embarrassment and emotional distress, as well as attorney’s fees.
Campbell’s announces no 3D printed meat in its soups or products
The food company, which also owns products such as Pace sauce, Prego sauce and V8 juice, pushed back against Barry’s comments heard on the recording. “You don’t want to eat (expletive) 3D printed chicken, do you?”
Campbell’s said in a statement: “The chicken in our soups is sourced from long-trusted, USDA-approved suppliers and meets our high quality standards. All of our soups are made with antibiotic-free chicken. Any claims to the contrary are completely false.”
Mike Snyder is a national trends news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, and X, and email him at: mike snyder & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com
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