OCTOBER 7, 2024: Lawmakers want to know why the Department of Agriculture and Boar’s Head did not take action to avoid a Listeria outbreak. A group of U.S. legislators are demanding answers from officials regarding egregious food safety violations at a production plant that has led to dozens of hospitalizations and at least 10 deaths. “What is especially troubling is how egregious sanitation problems occurred despite supposed regular oversight, oversight which typically includes at least one inspection per shift,” the legislators wrote to USDA officials. According to records released by USDA, inspectors turned up 69 records of noncompliance at this individual plant. Inspectors found and documented mold and mildew around the hand washing sinks for staff working with meats that are supposed to be ready to eat, mold in holding coolers, blood in puddles on the floor, insects in and around deli meats at the plant, and heavy meat buildup on walls and machinery. The legislators cited a New York Times story that reported that two years prior, U.S. inspectors warned that conditions at the Boar’s Head plant posed an imminent threat to public health.   SEPTEMBER 26, 2024: NEW YORK (AP) — A 10th person has died in the listeria outbreak that shuttered a Boar’s Head deli meat plant, federal health officials said Wednesday (Sept. 25, 2024). At least 59 people in 19 states have been sickened by the bacteria first detected in liverwurst made at the Jarratt, Virginia, plant. Illnesses were reported between late May and late August, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. All of those who fell ill were hospitalized. The latest fatality was reported in New York, bringing the total deaths to two each in New York and South Carolina and one each in Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia, Florida, Tennessee and New Mexico. The Sarasota, Florida-based company announced on Sept. 13 that it was closing the Jarratt plant and discontinuing production of liverwurst. The moves came after inspection reports revealed problems including mold, insects, dripping water and meat and fat residue on walls, floors and equipment dating back at least two years. Boar’s Head faces multiple lawsuits related to the deaths and illnesses. The plant hasn’t operated since late July, when officials with the U.S. Agriculture Department suspended inspections and the firm recalled more than 7 million pounds of deli meats because of potential contamination. Boar’s Head officials have said they “regret and deeply apologize” for contamination in their products. Listeria infections are caused by a hardy type of bacteria that can survive and even thrive during refrigeration. An estimated 1,600 people get listeria food poisoning each year and about 260 die, according to the CDC. Infections can be hard to pinpoint because symptoms may occur up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food.   AUGUST 8, 2024: NEW YORK (AP) — Three people have now died in a listeria food poisoning outbreak linked to Boar’s Head deli meats, federal food safety officials announced Thursday (Aug. 8, 2024), and the overall number of people sickened rose to 43. The additional death happened in Virginia, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a news release Thursday. The other two deaths were in New Jersey and Illinois. The CDC also said nine more cases were reported since a July 31 release about the outbreak, which started in late May. Boar’s Head recalled 7 million pounds of deli meats on July 30, expanding an initial recall on July 25 after a liverwurst sample collected by health officials in Maryland tested positive for listeria. The CDC said Thursday that a New York health officials tested a liverwurst sample and confirmed the same strain of listeria. The recall includes more than 70 products — including liverwurst, ham, beef salami and bologna — made at the company’s plant in Jarratt, Virginia. Boar’s Head already faces two lawsuits over the outbreak, one in a Missouri court and the other a class action suit in federal court in New York. The meat was distributed to stores nationwide, as well as to the Cayman Islands, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Panama. Consumers should not eat the recalled meats and should discard them or return them to the store for a refund. Listeria bacteria can survive and grow in the refrigerator, so officials say people who had recalled products should thoroughly clean and sanitize the fridge to prevent contamination. The CDC estimates 1,600 people a year get listeria food poisoning and about 260 of those people die. The most common symptoms include fever, muscle aches and fatigue, though infections may also cause confusion and convulsions. Infections are most dangerous for people older than 65, people with weak immune systems and pregnant people. Symptoms may not appear for weeks after eating contaminated food.   JULY 31, 2024: NEW YORK (AP) — The popular deli meat company Boar’s Head is recalling an additional 7 million pounds of ready-to-eat products made at a Virginia plant as an investigation into a deadly outbreak of listeria food poisoning continues, U.S. Agriculture Department officials said Tuesday (July 30, 2024). The new recall includes 71 products made between May 10 and July 29, 2024, under the Boar’s Head and Old Country brand names. It follows an earlier recall of more than 200,000 pounds of sliced deli poultry and meat. The new items include meat intended to be sliced at delis as well as some packaged meat and poultry products sold in stores. They include liverwurst, ham, beef salami, bologna and other products made at the firm’s Jarratt, Virginia, plant. The recalls are tied to an ongoing outbreak of listeria poisoning that has killed two people and sickened nearly three dozen in 13 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly all of those who fell ill have been hospitalized. Illnesses were reported between late May and mid-July. The problem was discovered when a liverwurst sample collected by health officials in Maryland tested positive for listeria. Further testing showed that the type of bacteria was the same strain causing illnesses in people. “Out of an abundance of caution, we decided to immediately and voluntarily expand our recall to include all items produced at the Jarratt facility,” the company said on its website. It has also halted production of ready-to-eat foods at the plant. The meat was distributed to stores nationwide, as well as to the Cayman Islands, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Panama, Agriculture Department officials said. Consumers who have the recalled products in their homes should not eat them and should discard them or return them to stores for a refund, company officials said. Health officials said refrigerators should be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized to prevent contamination of other foods. An estimated 1,600 people get listeria food poisoning each year and about 260 die, according to the CDC. Listeria infections typically cause fever, muscle aches and tiredness and may cause stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions. Symptoms can occur quickly or to up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food. The infections are especially dangerous for people older than 65, those with weakened immune systems and during pregnacy.   JULY 26, 2024: NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. health officials Friday (July 26, 2024) announced a recall of some Boar’s Head liverwurst and deli meats as they investigate a listeria outbreak that has sickened nearly three dozen people and caused two deaths. Boar’s Head Provisions Co. recalled liverwurst because it may be tainted with the listeria bacteria, the U.S. Agriculture Department said. The agency said a sample of Boar’s Head liverwurst from a Maryland store tested positive for listeria. The company is also recalling deli-sliced meats made the same day on the same line as the contaminated liverwurst at a Virginia plant, the USDA said. The sample was from an unopened package, collected by health officials as part of an investigation into the listeria outbreak Testing is underway to determine if the liverwurst sample is connected to the outbreak, health officials said. The company did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment. The listeria outbreak was first reported last week. Since late May, 34 people were sickened across 13 states, with all but one hospitalized. Two people died — in Illinois and New Jersey. It can take weeks for symptoms to develop symptoms so there may be more cases, officials said. People most commonly reported eating deli-sliced turkey, liverwurst and ham, officials said. Listeria can contaminate food and sicken people who eat it. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, nausea and diarrhea. It can be treated with antibiotics, but it is especially dangerous to pregnant women, newborns, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. An estimated 1,600 people get listeria food poisoning each year and about 260 die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Boar’s Head recall of over 200,000 pounds shipped nationwide applies to meats sliced at a deli counter, not prepackaged meats. It includes a number of multi-pound packages stamped with an Aug. 10 sell-by date, including bologna, garlic bologna, beef bologna, beef salami, Italian Cappy-style ham and Extra Hot Italian Cappy-style ham. Also included is Steakhouse Roasted Bacon Heat and Eat, with a sell-by date of Aug. 15. Consumers who might still have the recalled meats shouldn’t eat them, and officials said they should thoroughly clean their refrigerators to prevent contamination of other foods.