Congress Questions Reopening of Boar’s Head Deli Meat Plant Linked to Fatal Outbreak

Democratic legislators are raising concerns about the readiness of a Boar’s Head deli meat facility to resume operations, following its association with a fatal listeria outbreak last year.

Connecticut’s Rep. Rosa DeLauro has reached out through a letter on Monday, inviting company representatives to attend a meeting with the Congressional Food Safety Caucus to address a “consistent pattern of food safety breaches that endangered public health in the U.S.”

This letter, endorsed by nine other Democratic members, references reports by the Associated Press detailing recent sanitation issues at Boar’s Head facilities across three states and seeks a reply by September 26.

Company officials from Boar’s Head have announced plans to reopen their Jarratt, Virginia plant in the near future. This facility was previously closed down after listeria-contaminated liverwurst resulted in the deaths of 10 individuals, left many others ill, and led to a recall of over 7 million pounds of deli meats. Federal authorities attributed the outbreak to systemic failures at the plant.

In July, the U.S. Agriculture Department lifted the plant’s suspension, stating that federal inspectors would now closely supervise its operations.

AP-obtained records highlighted issues at facilities located in Arkansas, Indiana, and another Virginia site. Inspectors noted occurrences of meat and fat residues on equipment and surfaces, drains clogged with meat remnants, condensation accruing on ceilings and floors, overflowing trash collection, and personnel not adhering to essential hygiene protocols.

“It is appalling that Boar’s Head is encountering similar issues at other facilities of theirs,” the letter said. “This information leaves us less than confident that the facility in Jarratt, Virginia, is prepared to reopen safely.”

Boar’s Head officials said they were reviewing the letter.

“In our more than 120-year history, what happened at our Jarratt facility was the first time that such an event occurred,” the company said in a statement. “We moved quickly, aggressively and decisively in close collaboration with regulators and leading food safety experts to identify the root cause of the problem and implement enhancements to our food manufacturing nationwide to prevent something like this from ever happening again.”

Boar’s Head officials have declined to comment on the problems identified in the recent inspection reports obtained by the AP. They said that the company has boosted food safety practices in Jarratt and other sites aimed at reducing or eliminating listeria in finished products.

Once it reopens, the Jarratt plant will face at least 90 days of heightened monitoring and inspections by federal Food Safety and Inspection Service officials. Previously, inspections were conducted by state officials who operated on behalf of the agency.

The change aims to “ensure the establishment consistently and effectively implements its corrected food safety plans,” USDA officials said in a statement. It calls for stricter enforcement if lapses occur.

In the years before the outbreak, state inspectors documented numerous problems at the plant, including mold, insects, liquid dripping from ceilings and meat and fat residue on walls, floors and equipment, records showed. They were operating under a cooperative agreement that allows state inspectors to conduct federal inspections.

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