Missouri woman hospitalized in Listeria outbreak sues Boar's Head

After purchasing and consuming Boar's Head liverwurst in June 2024, plaintiff became severely ill and was hospitalized in early July.

Courtesy of OFT Law PLLC

OFT Food Safety & Injury Lawyers have filed the first lawsuit arising out of the multistate Listeria outbreak linked to deli meats. The defendants are Boar's Head Provisions Co. Inc. and Schnucks Markets Inc. The lawsuit has been filed in St. Louis County Circuit Court in Missouri. A copy of the complaint is available upon request.

The plaintiffs are a married Missouri couple. They regularly purchase deli meats — specifically Boar's Head liverwurst — from their local Schnucks grocery store. After purchasing and consuming Boar's Head liverwurst in June 2024, the Plaintiff became severely ill and was hospitalized in early July. Testing confirmed that she was suffering from a life-threatening Listeria infection. Thankfully, she survived after a long hospitalization, but then endured a lengthy stay at a rehabilitation facility to continue her recovery.

Elderly people, pregnant women and the babies they carry are at particular risk from Listeria infections, and deli meats are a notorious source of Listeria. Attorneys Ryan Osterholm and Brendan Flaherty have represented many victims of Listeria in prior outbreaks, including the Pilgrim's Pride deli meat Listeria outbreak that caused seven deaths and the Blue Bell ice cream Listeria outbreak that killed three people. Their clients want answers to help stop future outbreaks. "Unfortunately, we've seen this before with deli meats," said Osterholm. "It gets in the facility, and if you're not doing deep cleans often enough, it sticks around. That's how Listeria proliferates. From there, it gets in the food and it makes people very sick. Then people get hospitalized, and sometimes—far too often—people die."

According to Flaherty, "It is important that producers proactively seek out and destroy Listeria in production facilities." The current outbreak has so far caused at least 34 Listeria illnesses in 13 different states over a short period of time starting in early June 2024. "Listeria in deli meats is especially dangerous because of the potential for cross-contamination by handlers, in display cases, and on cutting surfaces. That is why it must be eradicated in the production facilities before it can ever enter the food supply."

Source: OFT Law PLLC

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