A recall of Boar’s Head deli meat products is widespread amid concerns they are linked to a deadly listeria outbreak in the U.S., federal officials said Tuesday.
Another 3,500 tons of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products sold under the Boar’s Head and Old Country brand names have been added to the original recall, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
This is in addition to the approximately 103 tons of Boar’s Head products recalled last week.
The recall now includes a total of 71 products produced between May 10 and July 29, the USDA said. The products have a sell-by date of July 29 to Oct. 17.
The problem was first discovered when the U.S. Food and Safety Inspection Service was notified that a liverwurst sample collected by the Maryland Department of Health from a Baltimore-area store tested positive for the same strain responsible for the outbreak, the USDA said.
According to the latest figures from Tuesday, the listeria outbreak has sickened at least 34 people in 13 states, two of whom had diedaccording to health officials.
The USDA said the recalled products were shipped nationwide, with some exported to Mexico, the Cayman Islands, the Dominican Republic and Panama. They were shipped to retailers with the establishment number “EST. 12612” or “P-12612” in the USDA inspection mark on the product labels.
Some of the recalled products include:
- Virginia Ham
- Olive bread
- All natural traditional ham
- SmokeMaster Beechwood Smoked Black Forest Ham
- Skinless beef sausages
- Natural sausages made from pork and beef
- Rosemary sun-dried tomato ham
- Liver sausage pate
- Canadian Style Bacon
- Garlic Bologna
- Old Haberno Ham
- Old Country Black Forest Ham
A full list of products included in the recall can be found here.
The agency said there are concerns that some of the recalled products are in consumers’ refrigerators and in deli stores. The first recall last week has led to several supermarket chains to close their delicatessen stores.
Symptoms of Listeria Infection often include fever, muscle aches, vomiting, and diarrhea. It can cause serious infections in people who are pregnant or 65 years or older, as well as in people with weakened immune systems, with symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, loss of balance, confusion, and convulsions.
For pregnant women, listeria infection can harm the baby, potentially causing “miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, or life-threatening infection in the newborn,” the CDC warns.
Symptoms usually begin two weeks after eating contaminated food, but can occur the same day or up to 10 weeks later, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antibiotics are used to treat listeria.
Cardiovascular disease specialist Dr. Nidhi Kumar told CBS New York On Monday it was announced that listeria is a “strong” bacteria that “can withstand high temperatures, such as in a freezer and even in a regular refrigerator.”
“If you bought deli meat and it’s in your refrigerator, remember that it can contaminate entire surfaces, so you should clean your refrigerator with a bleach solution,” Kumar said.
For more information about the outbreak and the recall, visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) website or call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 888-MPHotline.
—Megan Cerullo and Sara Moniuszko contributed to this report.
