Report finds many points on the Boar’s Head meat manufacturing facility that had a listeria outbreak : NPR

AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:

The listeria outbreak that started in Could continues to be killing folks and should pose a menace to much more folks. The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention stated final week that 9 folks have died, making it the worst outbreak since 2011. That is due to quite a few issues on the Boar’s Head deli meat manufacturing facility the place the uncommon however lethal foodborne micro organism has been traced. NPR client well being correspondent Yuki Noguchi joins us now. Good morning.

YUKI NOGUCHI, BYLINE: Good morning.

RASCOE: Yuki, how is that this outbreak nonetheless killing folks three months later?

NOGUCHI: Yeah, it is as a result of the quantity of meat concerned is huge. You realize, a few of it has an extended shelf life, additionally. So some shoppers may very well nonetheless have some of their fridge. And though many individuals get sick inside two weeks of consuming unhealthy listeria micro organism, it might probably take as much as 10 weeks to incubate. So individuals who ate the stuff a pair months in the past could now simply be getting sick with, you realize, fever, stiffness and muscle aches and stuff like that.

RASCOE: Wow. The manufacturing facility you talked about was apparently not in compliance. What had been a number of the issues discovered there?

NOGUCHI: You realize, the USDA’s meals security inspection studies paint a reasonably bleak and revolting image, spanning numerous years and many the descriptions of closely discolored or malodorous meat or meat particles splattered on the partitions or in between blades. You realize, ones from earlier this yr describe varied useless bugs and dripping ceilings, mildew and black mould close to machines. So, you realize, these studies present sanitation violations had been routine and never remoted. And so whereas the unique listeria contamination has been traced to Boar’s Head liverwurst, that manufacturing facility additionally made 70 different merchandise utilizing a number of the identical machines, in order that’s why it is simply unfold so uncontrollably.

RASCOE: So what are the chance right here, and the way ought to shoppers attempt to comprise them?

NOGUCHI: That is simply it. I imply, listeria could be very onerous to comprise. If a deli slicer cuts a contaminated piece of meat, something that touches it after that can be contaminated. The particular person touching the meat might then additionally unfold it, you realize, by way of their arms or the counter tops. The micro organism may unfold in folks’s fridges and infect different meals. So the large factor to know is whether or not you’ve gotten recalled product in your house. You realize, there is a particular quantity. It is 12612. That is on the inspection labels to search for on this case, however that is listed additionally on the CDC’s meals recall checklist.

Like I stated, these items has lengthy shelf lives. A few of it does not even have sell-by dates till October. And so in case you do have that stuff, finest to throw it out after which clear the fridge and each floor which may have are available contact with it. And folks ought to know the signs are sort of flu-like – muscle aches, fever, resulting in elevated stiffness and even seizures. Folks ought to see their physician if they believe a case, and the remedy in extreme circumstances is an antibiotic. We must always add that the corporate in the meantime says it deeply regrets the influence this has had on shoppers and has suspended operations at that plant till security requirements are met.

RASCOE: That is NPR’s Yuki Noguchi. Thanks a lot for becoming a member of us.

NOGUCHI: Thanks.

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