New York is the hardest-hit state in an outbreak of Listeria food poisoning illnesses and deaths that is linked to Boar’s Head Deli Meat and Liverwurst.
What You Can Do & How We Can Help
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Boar’s Head Deli Meat induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know got Listeria after eating Boar’s Head Deli Meat in New York, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Food Poisoning Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
What Happened?
Boar’s Head deli meat has been linked to a nationwide outbreak of Listeria food poisoning illnesses that hospitalized 59 people, killed 10 people, and caused countless unreported illnesses, according to the CDC Outbreak Investigation on September 25, 2024.
New York: 2 Dead, 17 Hospitalized After Eating Deli Meat
New York is the hardest-hit state in the Listeria outbreak linked to Boar’s Head deli meat: 1 person died and 17 people in New York have been hospitalized with Listeria, according to the CDC map of illnesses linked to deli meat.
New York Delis Hit Hard By Listeria Outbreak
New York delis and supermarkets have seen sales of deli meats plunge since the deadly outbreak of Listeria. “Sales are down for all of our deli products,” a New York City grocery executive told the New York Post. “People are trying to understand what’s going with cold cuts and the latest news is hitting too close to home.”
1st Class Action Lawsuit Filed in New York
In August 2024, a woman from New York City who bought Boar’s Head Ham was the first person to file a class action lawsuit against Boar’s Head. A growing number of individual lawsuits and wrongful death lawsuits have also been filed for people who were hospitalized or died of Listeria.
What is Listeria?
Listeria is a bacteria that can survive on refrigerated foods, such as deli meats. The symptoms may not appear for up to 10 weeks, or several months after eating contaminated food.
Who Is At Risk?
Healthy adults have the lowest risk, but anyone can develop a severe illness from Listeria. Pregnant women may have no symptoms, but suffer a miscarriage, stillbirth, or a baby infected at birth. In adults over 65 and other high-risk people, Listeria may spread beyond the digestive system to the brain or spinal cord, causing a life-threatening invasive infection, meningitis, bloodstream infection, sepsis, or death.
How Does Listeria Spread?
Listeria can hide in deli equipment that is difficult to clean, such as slicers and refrigerated display cases. Listeria also spreads easily in delis due to cross-contamination on meat slicing machines, equipment, employees’ hands, cutting boards, utensils, touching nearby meat products, and other surfaces inside the deli display case.
New York Deli Counters Shut Down For Deep Cleaning
In response to the Boar’s Head outbreak, Stop & Shop shut down delis to do a deep cleaning and disinfection of equipment in the deli counter.
Many other deli counters in New York were also forced to shut down temporarily so that employees could clean the equipment and display cases. The USDA has also published Best Practices for Controlling Listeria in Delicatessens.
How To Clean Your Refrigerator
The CDC has also published a guide for How To Clean Your Refrigerator After a Food Recall, for customers who may have bought Boar’s Head deli meat products and stored it at home. Be aware that Listeria can grow on food in the refrigerator and survive freezing.
How To Kill Listeria On Surfaces & Food
Listeria can be killed with bleach if you are cleaning surfaces, such as a refrigerator or kitchen counters. Healthy adults who choose to eat deli meat can avoid Listeria by heating it to 145º degrees F for whole meats, plus 3 minutes stand time for safety.
Who Should Not Eat Deli Meat?
Deli meat is a recurrent source of Listeria contamination and outbreaks, which is why health officials warn against eating deli meat if you are pregnant, over 65, or have a vulnerable immune system.
New York Delis & Delicatessans
New York is known for its classic delis and supermarkets where customers can buy made-to-order sandwiches, choose your meat and bread, and watch it being sliced and put together behind the counter.
There are countless deli counters located in New York City and throughout the state. These may be small family-run shops, big delis that have been in business for decades, or supermarkets in New York that also have a deli counter where you can buy meat or a sandwich.
New York delis typically contain a wide variety of deli meat products, such as liverwurst, ham, turkey, or roast beef.
Where Does Deli Meat Come From?
Deli meat comes from a variety of manufacturers, but Boar’s Head is one of the oldest and largest suppliers to New York and the rest of the United States. The family-run business was founded in 1905.
Every year, Boar’s Head supplies tens of millions of pounds of deli meat to New York and other states. The meat that is supplied to New York is produced at a facility located in a small town in Jarratt, Virginia.
Unfortunately, inspectors found bugs, mold, mildew, and puddles of blood and dozens of food safety violations at the Boar’s Head facility in Virginia.
Boar’s Head Recalls 7 Million Pounds of Deli Meat
In August 2024, Boar’s Head recalled 7.2 million pounds of deli meat after a sample of liverwurst tested positive for the exact strain of Listeria that caused illnesses and deaths.
The recalled deli meat products have “sell by” dates ranging from 29-JUL-2024 through 17-OCT-24. The recalled products shipped to retailers bear establishment number “EST. 12612” or “P-12612” inside the USDA mark of inspection on the product labels.
Where Were Boar’s Head Products Sold in New York?
Boar’s Head products were sold at many stores in New York, including (but not limited to):
- Key Food
- Stop & Shop
- Shoprite
- ACME
- Decicco
- Jubiless Market Place
- C-Town
- Gourmet Garage
- City Acres Market
- Gristedes
- Morton Williams
- Fine Fare
- Food Bazaar
- Western Beef
- Bravo
- Associated
- Pioneer
- Food Town
- America’s Food Basket
- And more
Where Else Are Boar’s Head Products Sold?
Boar’s Head also manufactures cheeses, hummus, and condiments, Hans Jurgen, pickle garnishes, and other deli products.
Boar’s Head deli products are sold in New York City and nationwide in the United States, and also internationally in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Panama, Cayman Islands, and more.
Do I have a New York Boar’s Head Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Boar’s Head Deli Meat induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know got Listeria after eating Boar’s Head Deli Meat in New York, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Food Poisoning Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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