Boar's Head indefinitely closes Virginia plant tied to deadly listeria outbreak, discontinues liverwurst

Boar’s Head announced Friday it has indefinitely shut down a Virginia deli meat plant and discontinuing the liverwurst that is linked to a deadly multi-state listeria outbreak that also sickened dozens.

In what it called a “dark moment” in the company’s history, Boar's Head said in a Friday statement it’s indefinitely closing its plant in Jarratt, Virginia, where the liverwurst product connected to the outbreak was made.

The cause of the contamination was a “specific production process” that only existed at the Jarratt facility, the company said.

“We regret and deeply apologize for the recent Listeria monocytogenes contamination in our liverwurst product. We understand the gravity of this situation and the profound impact it has had on affected families,” the statement said.

“We have made the difficult decision to indefinitely close this location, which has not been operational since late July 2024. It pains us to impact the livelihoods of hundreds of hard-working employees," the company said.

"We do not take lightly our responsibility as one of the area’s largest employers," the statement continues. "But, under these circumstances, we feel that a plant closure is the most prudent course. We will work to assist each of our employees in the transition process.”

This year’s liverwurst outbreak killed nine and hospitalized 57. Boar’s Head recalled its Strassburger Brand Liverwurst on July 25 over concerns it contained the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes.

USDA

The CDC  said the company was responsible for the largest listeriosis outbreak since 2011, when more than 30 people died from affected cantaloupe.

The recall was expanded to include 7 million pounds of meat, which the company said was every item produced at the facility.

The United States Department of Agriculture on July 31 gave the Jarratt facility a notice of suspension.

Boar’s Head said since its voluntary recall in late July, it has worked with the USDA and state government regulatory agencies and leading food safety experts to learn what went wrong and make improvements.

Some increased measures, according to Boar’s Head, include: Appointing a new chief food safety officer who will report directly to the company’s president; launching a food safety council comprised of independent food safety experts; and creating an enhanced and companywide food safety and QA program, Boar’s Head said.

Gallup recently found that Americans’ faith in the government’s ability to provide safe food in its food supply has reached a record low since 1999.