VA Boar's Head Plant Linked To Deadly Deli Meat Listeria Outbreak Reopens

JARRATT, VA — The Virginia deli meat plant linked to a listeria outbreak that killed 10 people and sickened more than 60 others in 2024 has reopened, the company said on Thursday.

The plant in Jarratt resumed limited operations on Monday, nearly 17 months after it was shut downfollowing the outbreak. Natalie Dyenson, the company's chief food safety officer, told The Associated Press that the facility has been completely revamped and tested to ensure no contamination remains.

“That facility has literally been rebuilt from the inside out,” Dyenson said in an interview on Wednesday.

The U.S. Agriculture Department also confirmed that federal inspectors required for operation are on site.

The Jarratt plant closed in September 2024, two months after the company suspended all production there when a liverwurst sample tested positive for listeria.

The discovery prompted a recall of more than 7 million pounds of deli meat products for possible listeria contamination. In all, 10 people died and 60 were sickened in more than a dozen states.

In a statement announcing the closure, Boar's Head said it decided to close the Jarratt plant due to the "seriousness of the outbreak." The company also permanently discontinued liverwurst production.

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In July, USDA officials said they had “thoroughly reviewed” the plant and lifted the forced suspension; however, documents obtained by The Associated Press through a freedom of information request show that Boar’s Head plants in Virginia and two other states had been flagged for the same kinds of sanitation problems that led to the outbreak.

Before the Jarratt plant's closure, inspector reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that in the year leading up to the deadly recall, 69 reports of “noncompliance” had been filed with the agency’s Food Safety Inspection Service against the plant.

The dozens of violations in the plant that produces ready-to-eat meats included a “rancid smell,” mold and mildew buildup, “ample amounts of blood in puddles on the floor,” and pooled water from leaks that showed green algae growth.

Inspectors said there was condensation from one leak dripping over meat products. After inspectors flagged the problem, an employee cleaned it up three times, but each time, “the leaks returned within 10 seconds,” inspectors wrote on July 27 after noting fans that appeared to be blowing the condensation onto uncovered deli meats.

Inspectors also noted both live and dead insects, writing after a June inspection, “Small flying gnat-like insects were observed crawling on the walls and flying around the room. The room’s walls had heavy meat buildup.”

Following the report's release, Boar’s Head spokesperson Elizabeth Ward said in a statement to CBS News that operations were suspended so the plant could be thoroughly disinfected and employees could be retrained in food safety.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.