The USDA’s inspector general has launched an internal investigation into the agency’s handling of problems at a Boar’s Head manufacturing plant linked to a deadly Listeria outbreak.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has treated the situation at the meat plant as an “abject failure.” He requested that the inquiry be held on September 5.
“USDA took virtually no action – allowing Boar’s Head to continue normal operations at its chronically unsanitary facility in Virginia – despite finding repeated serious violations. The Virginia plant should have been closed years ago before people got sick or died from Listeria. The IG investigation is an essential first step to ensure accountability and prevent such deadly mistakes from happening again,” Blumenthal, D-CT, said in an announcement of the investigation.
The outbreak has sickened 59 people in 19 states and killed 10. The company has closed its Jarratt, VA plant and permanently halted liverwurst production nationwide. Boar’s Head has recalled more than 7 million pounds of processed meats due to the outbreak.
Inspector General Phyllis Fong will review the actions of the Virginia state inspectors with whom USDA contracted to determine whether they appropriately responded to dozens of reports of problems at the manufacturing plant.
The problems violated food safety regulations and posed an immediate threat to public health. Records show the problems are at least two years old.
Blumenthal did not disclose the agency’s response to him, but said the internal investigation would evaluate its approach to recurring problems and whether state inspections would appropriately reduce the risk of contaminated products entering the food supply.
“The IG investigation announced today will determine whether appropriate corrective and enforcement actions for reported non-compliances at the Boar’s Head plant have been implemented and whether the agency has an effective process in place to address recurring non-compliances reported by the state inspected establishments are reported, identified, improved and addressed to reduce harm. risk of adulterated products entering the food supply,” Blumenthal said.
In addition to requesting an internal investigation, Blumenthal and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-CT, on September 26 asked USDA Secretary Thomas Vilsack and U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to work closely together in determining whether criminal charges should be filed brought against the owners of Boar’s Head. for their responsibility in the outbreak. The pair also asked the USDA to strengthen its Listeria prevention protocols and investigate other Boar’s Head locations for safety violations.
The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service has declined to release documents about the agency’s inspections and enforcement actions at the Jarratt plant and reports from other plants, saying they are related to an ongoing law enforcement investigation.
Boar’s Head is a private company owned by the Brunckhorst and Bischoffs families. It was founded in 1905 in Brooklyn, NY. Outside estimates put annual sales between $1 billion and $3 billion.
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