Food safety experts criticized government health inspectors for allowing a “listeria factory” to operate despite dozens of violations before a deadly outbreak was linked to contaminated Boar's Head deli meat.
Insects were found, blood stains on the floors and mold was found growing at the company's plant in Jarratt, Virginia, last year. As per the records Issued by the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.
“These inspection reports show that this was a listeria factory in addition to being a meat factory,” food safety advocate Bill Marler told the Post.
“The government should answer the question, what were you doing? Doesn't this raise enough questions given the size of the plant.”
At least nine people have died, including one in New York, and 57 have been hospitalized since officials identified the Jarrett facility as the source of the listeria outbreak, according to the C.D.C.
Most cases were reported in New York 17 residents got sick From contaminated deli meat. Two people died in South Carolina and one person each died in New Jersey, Virginia, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee and New Mexico.
In total, health inspectors found 69 cases “Non-compliance“At the Jarrett plant.
On Feb. 21, an inspector noticed “a foul odor” and “a significant amount of blood on the floor” in a crude cooler.
A “black mold-like substance” was observed in another holding cooler on Jan. 9 and again on June 1 on one to two inches of meat sticking out of four steel vats.
Inspectors observed mold in multiple locations during a total of six visits.
On June 10, an inspector observed “about 15-20 flies moving in and out of four pickle jars kept in the room.”
Another sign of an impending danger should have been condensation and blocked drains, which created persistent moisture and an environment in which listeria thrived, said Lee-Ann Jakes, a professor of food, bioprocessing and nutritional sciences at North Carolina State University, reading from the report released Thursday.
“If I were an inspector at a plant like that, I’d say, ‘You guys should be cleaning like crazy for listeria,’ because many of the noncompliances are risk factors for a listeria problem,” Jakes told the Post.
Boar's Head recalled Seven million pounds Sales of ready-to-eat deli meat and poultry products fell sharply last month, apart from a small rebound in July, when the pandemic was first detected.
The 119-year-old family business — which has now closed the Jarratt plant — is responsible for testing for listeria at its facilities, but the results of those tests are not posted on the USDA website, officials said.
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, which is responsible for regulating meat plants, placed the blame on the person responsible for allowing the plant to remain open.
The agency issued a statement Thursday explaining that the inspectors were actually employees of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS), which contracts with the USDA and has the authority to monitor the plant in accordance with federal standards.
An FSIS spokesperson said in a statement that the plant “will remain closed until the establishment can demonstrate it can produce a safe product,” adding that the agency is “working closely with VDACS to ensure the establishment has an effective system in place to produce safe food for the public.”
This excuse did not hold water before a food safety expert.
“FSIS is still embroiled in this case and trying to figure out how to save face and one way, of course, is to say it was Virginia's responsibility. But ultimately the responsibility falls on the federal agency,” the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Virginia agency, meanwhile, told the Post that its staff “conduct inspections every work day” at the Jarrett plant and said the plant is required to take “corrective action” for each “noncompliance.”
VDACS said last year it sent 12 samples from the plant to a USDA lab for testing, and they all tested negative for listeria.
Despite these efforts and the copious notes taken by inspectors, the Maryland Department of Health sounded alarm bells in July when it tested a sample of liverwurst for listeria, resulting in two recalls of Boar's Head products.
Outbreak This is the largest listeriosis incident since the 2011 cantaloupe-related outbreak.
Some victims are preparing to file lawsuits, including the family of 88-year-old Virginia resident Gunter Morgenstein, a survivor of the massacre who died July 18 after eating liverwurst purchased June 30 from a Harris Teeter supermarket.
The family's attorney, Tony Coveney, said he is preparing a lawsuit against Boar's Head and will file it this week.
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“My family is devastated,” Morgenstein's son Garson said in a statement. “We hope that through the legal process we will be able to make Boar's Head and other luncheon meat products safe for future consumers.”
“We deeply regret the impact this recall has had on the families affected. No words can fully express our condolences and our deep and profound sorrow for those who have suffered loss or illness,” Boar's Head said in a statement.
Other victims, including the family of an Illinois resident who died after contracting listeria, and a 74-year-old Virginia woman who was in a coma for several days, have contacted Marler and filed a lawsuit against the 100-year-old family business.
“We're seeing a small number of people who get sick,” Marler said. “Many people with listeria have symptoms like diarrhea and fever,” but they may not be hospitalized and so aren't tested for listeria.
