CDC says deadly Listeria outbreak traced to Boar’s Head deli meats is over; investigations continue
The CDC has declared an outbreak of Listeria infections traced to Boar’s Head deli meats to be over.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began investigating the outbreak on July 19. Ultimately the outbreak sickened 59 people across 19 states, killing 10. The company closed its production plant in Jarratt, VA, and permanently stopped liverwurst production nationwide. Boar’s Head recalled more than 7 million pounds of deli meats because of the outbreak.
Even though the outbreak has been declared over, the CDC is continuing to warn against the consumption of deli meats for certain groups of people.
“. . . people who are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system should avoid deli meat or reheat it to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F or until steaming hot to kill any germs,” according to the CDC’s outbreak update.
A group of federal lawmakers, led by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-CT, called for an investigation into the outbreak and Boar’s Head manufacturing practices.
Also, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has said the company is under criminal investigation. That revelation came after news organizations requested documents from the department. In keeping with its standing policy, the U.S. Department of Justice has declined to comment on the ongoing investigation.
The USDA Inspector General has launched an internal investigation into the agency’s handling of problems at the Boar’s Head production plant linked to the deadly Listeria outbreak.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT, said the USDA’s handling of the situation at the deli meat production plant was an “abject failure.” He requested the investigation on Sept. 5.
“USDA took virtually no action — allowing Boar’s Head to continue business as usual at its chronically unsanitary Virginia plant — despite finding repeated serious violations. The Virginia plant should have been shut down years ago before people got sick or died from Listeria. The IG investigation is a vital first step to assure accountability and prevent such deadly mistakes from happening again,” Blumenthal, D-CT, said in an announcement of the investigation.
The problems cited by Blumenthal were in violation of food safety regulations and posed an imminent danger to public health. Inspection records show the problems dated back at least as far as two years.
Blumenthal did not release the agency’s response to him, but said that the internal investigation would evaluate the handling of recurrent problems and whether state inspections properly reduced the risk of tainted products entering the food supply.
“The IG investigation announced today will determine if proper corrective and enforcement actions for reported noncompliances at the Boar’s Head plant were implemented; and if the agency has an effective process to identify, elevate, and address recurring noncompliances reported at state-inspected establishments to reduce the risk of adulterated products from entering the food supply,” Blumenthal said.
The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service has declined to release documents regarding the agency’s inspections and enforcement actions at the Jarratt plant, as well as reports from other factories, saying that they relate to an ongoing law enforcement investigation.
Boar’s Head is a private company owned by the the Brunckhorsts and Bischoffs families. It is estimated that annual sales top $1 billion. The company was founded in 1905 in Brooklyn, NY.
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