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Boar’s Head liver sausage will never be available for purchase or consumption again, the company said.
The decision to “permanently discontinue” the deli meats was announced Friday, months after an ongoing listeria outbreak was discovered that was linked to a “specific production process” and caused 57 hospitalizations and nine deaths in 18 states by the end of August, USA TODAY reported.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was notified of the deadly outbreak on July 19 and decided seven days later to recall 207,528 pounds of Boar’s Head liver sausage.
Then on July 30, the company decided to expand the recall to include all products made in the same factory that produced the liver sausage. This resulted in the recall of 7.2 million pounds of Boar’s Head products, according to previous reporting by USA TODAY.
The “root cause” of the contamination, according to Boar’s Head, was “a special production process that existed only at the Jarratt plant and was only used for liver sausage.”
“Due to this discovery, we have decided to permanently discontinue liver sausage production,” the company said in a statement.
The company’s latest announcement is one of many since the outbreak was discovered in July, which led to a multi-agency investigation, several lawsuits and calls for a congressional investigation, USA TODAY reported.
The human balance: His father died from listeria, which was linked to Boar’s Head meat. He had to tell his story.
Boar’s Head announces closure of its Virginia plant
Boar’s Head also made the “difficult decision” to indefinitely close the Virginia-based factory that made the liver sausage, impacting about 500 union members and other management employees, USA TODAY reported.
“We are saddened to be impacting the livelihoods of hundreds of hard-working employees. We take our responsibilities as one of the region’s largest employers very seriously,” said Boar’s Head. “But under these circumstances, we believe a plant closure is the most sensible course of action. We will endeavour to support each of our employees in the transition process.”
USA TODAY reported that the factory has had problems since at least 2021, including reports of mold, insects, water leaks and other unsanitary conditions.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture suspended the facility in July, citing the facility’s failure to “maintain sanitary conditions” and “manufactured a product contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes,” which has been linked to an ongoing outbreak.
Boar’s Head “made no excuses” in its response to the inspection reports and reports of violations at the Jarratt plant.
Boar’s Head wants to use the “dark moment” to improve
While acknowledging it was a “dark moment” in the company’s history, Boar’s Head plans to use the experience as “an opportunity to improve food safety programs not only for our company, but for the entire industry.”
To prevent future incidents, the company will “immediately” implement improved food safety and quality measures. These are:
- Appointment of a new Chief Food Safety & Quality Assurance Officer
- Establishment of a Boar’s Head Food Safety Council, consisting of independent, industry-leading food safety experts
- Creation of an improved company-wide food safety and quality assurance program
According to Boar’s Head, the company remains “true” to its commitment to customers and to the safety and quality of its products.
“We promise you that we will work tirelessly to regain your trust and ensure that all Boar’s Head products consistently meet the high standards you deserve and expect. We are determined to learn from this experience and emerge stronger.”
Contributors: Mike Snider
