The deadly Listeria outbreak that reportedly prompted Boar's Head to indefinitely close its contaminated plant has left 500 workers suddenly out of work and devastated a Virginia town.
Jarratt, a small town 60 miles south of Richmond, has been hit hardest by the brand's decision to stop producing the popular liverwurst product that has been linked to at least nine deaths and 50 hospitalizations in 18 states.
The indefinite closure, announced last week, comes after health inspectors documented dozens of disturbing violations at the facility, including insect infestations, pools of blood on the floor and mold in the equipment.
The town has just 600 residents, and businesses that relied on the workers have already suffered economic damage, several locals said.
“If you don't have money, you can't fix your car,” said Mike Wilkens, a 63-year-old mechanic from Jarratt. He told The Washington Post.
“We fixed those guys' cars. Everybody needs to get a job, otherwise everyone will be riding in a horse-drawn carriage and it will become a ghost town.”
One former factory worker, a single mother with four young children, told the paper she was worried about how she would be able to pay her rent, water and electricity bills.
“It was a good job,” an unidentified woman who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico told The Washington Post.
Boar's Head, a family-owned company based in Sarasota, Florida, said in a statement that an internal investigation at the plant determined the contamination was due to a specific manufacturing process.
The company said the process only existed at the Jarratt plant and was only used on liverwurst.
No timetable for reopening has been given, leaving workers and residents confused.
“We're a big employer, so this is going to be a big blow,” Tracy Morris, a nursing manager at a nearby state prison, told the paper.
“We have highways and major transport hubs and here we have nothing,” added Jarratt resident Roy Kee, 75.
“We only have farmers. They don't employ many people now because they have a lot of automated equipment.”
Production at the Jarratt plant was halted in July and Boar's Head recalled more than 7 million pounds of deli meat and other products after testing confirmed that products contaminated with Listeria were threatening people's health.
The USDA has filed several citations at the plant over the past year alleging health and safety violations, including having “unclean” machinery.
Government inspectors also found flies in the pickle bins and “large amounts of meat” on the walls.
