Indian Co-Workers 'Idiots': Campbell's Puts Executive On Leave After Alleged Racist Rant

Campbell's Co. put an executive on leave and defended its ingredients after a lawsuit alleged the employee criticized its products and made racist remarks. 

Martin Bally, a vice president of information technology at Campbell's, called the company's products highly processed food for "poor people" and referred to Indian co-workers as "idiots", according to a lawsuit filed Nov. 20 by Robert Garza, a former Campbell’s employee, in Michigan’s Wayne County Circuit Court.

Garza also claimed Bally said Campbell's soup contains "bioengineered meat" and that he didn't want to eat "a piece of chicken that came from a 3-D printer", Local 4 News in Detroit reported, citing a recording Garza said he made of a conversation with Bally. Campbell's on Tuesday said that Bally had been placed on temporary leave while the company investigates the alleged comments.

"If the comments heard on the audio recording were in fact made by Mr. Bally, they are unacceptable," the company said in its statement. "Keep in mind, the alleged comments heard on the audio were made by a person in IT, who has nothing to do with how we make our food."

Bally didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Garza was hired by Campbell’s as a cybersecurity analyst in September 2024, according to the lawsuit. Bally made the comments during a meeting in November 2024 to discuss Garza’s salary.

The lawsuit alleges Garza was fired in retaliation for reporting Bally’s comments to his manager. The case names Bally and Campbell’s as defendants and alleges violations of state civil rights law.

Campbell’s also released a fact sheet defending the quality of its ingredients, saying it does not use “3D-printed chicken, lab-grown chicken, or any form of artificial or bioengineered meat in our soup.”