Ten people have died and 59 have been hospitalized, as a Listeria outbreak linked to Boar’s Head has swept the country, affecting at least 19 states.
What is Boar’s Head?
Since 1905, Boar’s Head has been a premium supplier of meats, cheeses, prepared foods and condiments. They built a reputation for quality products, and many consumers were willing to pay higher prices for their high-end deli products.
However, in recent months, Boar’s Head has found itself at the center of a significant public health scare and a subsequent criminal investigation, due to Listeria bacteria traced to its deli meat products.
The Boar’s Head outbreak
In early 2024, the CDC announced an investigation into a Listeria outbreak that was traced back to Boar’s Head deli meats. The deadly outbreak was first reported on July 19, 2024, by the CDC and was followed by a recall of roughly 7.2 million pounds of product by Boar’s Head. This included various types of meat produced between May 10 and July 29 of 2024.
What is Listeria?
Listeria monocytogenes is a dangerous bacterium that can cause severe illness and death, particularly in vulnerable populations. This includes:
- Pregnant women
- The elderly
- Individuals with compromised immune systems
The symptoms of listeriosis vary per person, and can include:
- Fever
- Stiff neck
- Headache
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Meningitis (in severe cases)
- Death (in severe cases)
The Boar’s Head plant in Jarrett, Virginia
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), along with the CDC, revealed that certain batches of Boar’s Head meats tested positive for Listeria, leading to widespread recalls and increased scrutiny of the company’s manufacturing processes.
The findings also revealed horrifying conditions in Boar’s Head’s Jarret, VA processing plant. This location is receiving much scrutiny, as USDA officials deemed it an “imminent threat” two years ago in 2022, yet no further enforcement was taken after these reports – even after Boar’s Head officials were informed of their own “imminent threat” to food safety at the Jarrett, Virginia plant.
What conditions did they find at the Jarrett, Virginia plant?
USDA Food Safety Inspectors reported many issues at the Jarrett location, including:
- Insects, both alive and dead in the processing area
- Black and green mold and mildew
- Dripping and standing water
- Flies in pools of blood on the floor
- Sludge and black smudges
- Slimy material and other residues found on machines and in several rooms across the facility
- Putrid, off odors
- Thick and flaking rust in several locations, including above processing lines
- Dirt, screws, and trash strewn on the floor in the production areas
Boar’s Head announced that it would be closing its Jarratt, Virginia plant. In turn, this will put around 500 people out of work. Though Boar’s Head promises to relocate these employees to other locations, the plant was Jarrett’s bread and butter. The area will likely become a ghost town.
This plant is one of many that the outbreak has been linked to. The ongoing saga has resulted in a multi-agency investigation, several lawsuits and, and calls for a congressional investigation.
The Boar’s Head criminal investigation
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D, Conn) and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D, Conn) called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Justice Department (USDoJ) to consider whether criminal charges against Boar’s Head are appropriate. Past cases of serious food poisoning have resulted criminal penalties.
What other foodborne illness outbreaks resulted in lawsuits?
- In 2020, Chipotle agreed to pay $25 million in penalties to resolve criminal charges from food poisoning outbreaks in 2015 and 2018.
- In 2015, former Peanut Corporation of America executive Stewart Parnell was sentenced to 28 years in prison after an outbreak of Salmonella from his company’s peanut butter killed nine people and sickened more than 700. In that case, facts established that Mr. Parnell (then CEO) knew that his company was shipping Salmonella-tainted peanut butter and that he and other executives actively covered that up.
In the Boar’s Head case, it would be difficult for management and executives to claim they were unaware of the shocking and abhorrent conditions at the Jarret plant. Given the investigative findings dating back to 2022, plus the broad federal laws pertaining to food safety, charges are likely. The federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act makes it illegal to manufacture, introduce into commerce, deliver, or receive any adulterated food item. A food is considered adulterated not only if it contains a substance that is harmful to health, but if it has been prepared, packed or even just held under unsanitary conditions whereby it may have become contaminated with filth.
The Boar’s Head lawsuits
The first wrongful death lawsuit was filed against Boar’s Head on behalf of an 88-year-old Virginia grandfather and Holocaust survivor, who died after eating contaminated liverwurst. Filed in Sarasota, Florida, the suit explained that Gunter Morgenstein purchased later-recalled Boar’s Head liverwurst on June 30, 2024, from his local Harris Teeter store and became ill after consuming it. He was hospitalized on July 8 and was later found to be suffering from sepsis and listeriosis. Despite “aggressive measures,” he died on July 18 surrounded by his son and wife of 50 years.
Subsequently, multimillion dollar lawsuits have been filed in Virginia and Missouri and a potential class action lawsuit was filed in New York. Additional lawsuits are likely.
I purchased a recalled product. What do I do?
Anyone who has purchased Boar’s Head or any other recalled products should not consume them, and should immediately throw them away or return them to the place of purchase, according to the USDA. Retailers who have the products in stock are likewise advised not to sell them.
If you happen to find one of the affected meats in your refrigerator, be sure to follow up its disposal with a thorough cleaning of your refrigerator to prevent cross-contamination. Retailers should likewise clean and sanitize all surfaces and discard any open meats and cheeses in the deli.
I have been sickened by Boar’s Head. What do I do?
If you or a loved one has suffered a foodborne illness through the negligence of another, you may be entitled to compensation. Call the experienced foodborne illness attorneys at Allen & Allen today for a free consultation, at 866-388-1307.
