Six More Deaths in Listeria Outbreak Tied to Boar”s Head Deli Meats

THURSDAY, Aug. 29, 2024 (HealthDay News) — The death toll from listeria linked to tainted Boar”s Head deli meats has risen to nine, with six more fatalities reported Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Deaths have now occurred in Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

Cases of bacterial illness tied to the recalled meats continue to mount.

“Since the last update on August 8, 2024, 14 more illnesses have been reported bringing the total to 57,” the CDC said in an update. “All 57 people have been hospitalized.”

It”s now the largest listeria outbreak reported in the United States since one linked to tainted cantaloupes in 2011, the agency added.

Some of the suspect product could still be in family refrigerators, since some of the products had sell dates stretching into October.

“Everyone should check their homes for any remaining recalled Boar’s Head products since they can have long a shelf-life,” the CDC said. “Look for “EST. 12612” or “P-12612″ inside the USDA mark of inspection on the product labels.”

On July 30, the recall of Boars Head deli meats broadened to include an additional 7 million pounds of products because they may also have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria.

The expanded recall is part of an ongoing investigation of ready-to-eat foods made at the company”s Jarratt, Va. plant.

According to CBS News, records released by the USDA”s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) showed 69 instances of “noncompliance” noted by the agency at the Jarratt plant over the past year.

According to the FSIS records, mold and mildew were found at sinks used by plant employees to wash their hands, on the outside of steel vats, and in holding coolers between the site”s smokehouses.

In other spots around the plant, pooling or leaking water was seen, including one puddle with “a green algal growth” and condensation found to be “dripping over product being held,” CBS News reported.

Beyond that, in February FSIS inspectors noted “ample amounts of blood in puddles on the floor” and a “rancid smell” in a cooler used at the plant.

Insect infestations — flies, “gnat like insects” and “ants traveling down the wall,” a beetle and a cockroach — were all observed by inspectors at the Jarratt plant in June.

In a statement, a Boar”s Head spokesperson told CBS News that the company deeply regrets the impact of the recall, and said that said food safety is their “absolute priority.”

“As a USDA-inspected food producer, the agency has inspectors in our Jarratt, Virginia plant every day and if at any time inspectors identify something that needs to be addressed, our team does so immediately, as was the case with each and every issue raised by USDA in this report,” company spokesperson Elizabeth Ward said.