Campbell’s Co. announced Tuesday that one of its executives has been placed on leave as the company investigates allegations of racist comments and disparaging remarks about its products and customers.
According to The Associated Press, the executive, Martin Bally, vice president of information technology, was named in a lawsuit filed last week by former Campbell’s employee Robert Garza in Michigan, where both men reside. Campbell’s is headquartered in New Jersey.
Garza claims he met with Bally in November 2024 to discuss his salary.
During that meeting, which Garza allegedly recorded, Bally described Campbell’s products as “highly process(ed) food” and said they were intended for “poor people.”
The lawsuit further alleges that Bally made racist remarks about Indian workers, calling them “idiots.”
According to Garza, Bally also admitted that he often arrived at work under the influence after consuming marijuana edibles.
Garza told his manager, J.D. Aupperle, on Jan. 10 that he intended to report Bally’s comments to Campbell’s human resources department. Garza alleges that Aupperle neither encouraged him to report the incident nor provided guidance on how to proceed.
Less than three weeks later, on Jan. 30, Garza was terminated from the company. He is now seeking monetary damages and has included both Bally and Aupperle as defendants, holding them responsible for his termination.
In a statement Tuesday, Campbell’s said that if the comments on the recording were indeed made by Bally, they would be “unacceptable.”
“Such language does not reflect our values and the culture of our company,” the company said. “We do not tolerate that kind of language under any circumstances.”
Campbell’s emphasized that the remarks were allegedly made by an IT executive “who has nothing to do with how we make our food.” The company added: “We are proud of the food we make, the people who make it, and the high-quality ingredients we use to provide consumers with good food at a good value. The comments heard on the recording about our food are not only inaccurate — they are patently absurd.”
