The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that every Boar's Head processing facility in the country is now on the receiving end of a law enforcement investigation after a new fatality was linked to its contaminated, recalled meats, lifting the nationwide death toll to 10.
The first meat-related listeria illness was traced back to a production plant in Jarratt, Virginia, in late July. Since then, Boar's Head recalled over 7.2 million pounds of its deli meats, including ready-to-eat liverwurst and other several other products.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed this week that a tenth person has died in connection with consuming the tainted meats -- the second such case in New York. Hospitalizations have also risen, with at least 59 showing symptoms. Considering that listeria takes around 10 weeks to manifest, investigators expect those numbers to increase. It is the most severe listeria outbreak in over a decade.
On September 26, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for the USDA and the Justice Department to look into Boar's Head further.
"We cannot let large corporations get away with endangering public health, it is imperative that we hold food companies to the highest standards so that Americans can feel safe shopping for groceries and feeding their families. Boar's Head must be held accountable, those impacted by this crisis deserve more than an apology, they deserve justice," Blumenthal and DeLauro wrote.
The lawmakers blame the USDA for letting Boar's Head continue production despite knowing the associated safety risks.
"It is painfully clear that by choosing not to aggressively ensure that safety standards were being followed, the USDA failed to uphold its congressional mandate," they wrote. "The agency allowed Boar's Head to put profits over people by producing what its fiduciaries surely knew were products that were at a high risk of adulteration due to the horrific conditions at the Jarratt plant."
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service is investigating Boar's Head further in what could either be a "criminal or civil" examination, according to CBS News.
"The time for action is long overdue, and we urge your agencies to work together to seek immediate justice for impacted consumers and to prevent this from happening again," Blumenthal and DeLauro wrote.
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
