After changes, Boar’s Head reopens plant tied to listeria outbreak

Boar’s Head — the Sarasota-based brand specializing in delicatessen foods — has reopened a Virginia plant where a listeria outbreak originated less than two years ago. The company says it renovated the facility, strengthened its food safety protocols companywide and retrained all its staff.

The plant in Jarratt, Virginia, resumed operations Feb. 2, according to a Feb. 5 statement from Boar's Head. The facility closed in 2024 in connection with a listeria outbreak that the Centers for Disease Control said resulted in 60 hospitalizations and 10 deaths across 19 states.

In the past year, the Jarratt facility underwent “extensive renovation” that resulted in “substantial enhancements,” the company says in a statement. Officials declined to disclose the cost and nature of the renovations. Boar’s Head also says it “made significant investments in implementing even more stringent requirements across all its facilities.”

Among the companywide changes: Boar’s Head employees at all facilities have been re-trained on food safety procedures, and the company has implemented a continuous training program to ensure workers are educated consistently on the latest food safety procedures. The Boar’s Head sanitation team received additional third-party training, and the company says it “bolstered daily cleaning and sanitation procedures.” In addition, Boar's Head says it has invested in laboratory testing and analysis technologies to enhance listeria sampling at all its facilities.

The Jarratt plant — which received a notice of suspension from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on July 30, 2024, for failing to comply with regulatory requirements — is reopening under the USDA Alt 2 Listeria control program, according to a statement.

“Alt 2 is a proven step in the food preparation process that dramatically reduces foodborne pathogens and results in even higher food safety standards across its entire ready-to-eat meat and poultry product portfolio,” Boar’s Head says in the statement.

In addition to making physical and procedural changes, the company added a chief food safety officer to its leadership team last year.

Chief Food Safety Officer Natalie Dyenson brings nearly three decades of food safety expertise to her role. Previously, she served as the chief regulatory and food safety officer for the International Fresh Produce Association and held food safety leadership positions at Dole Food Company, Walmart and Walt Disney World.

"Since I joined Boar's Head in May 2025, it has been clear to me from day one that Boar's Head is a company that puts food safety and quality first," Dyenson says in the statement. "The extensive enhancements and stringent protocols implemented at the Jarratt facility, as well as the advancements and the actions we've taken across our organization, ensure we uphold rigorous safety standards. We are committed to building on our more than 120-year history of delivering products that consumers love and can eat with confidence."

Boar's Head, which was founded in 1905, also created a Food Safety Advisory Council that works in collaboration with Dyenson to make innovations and enhancements to the company’s safety and quality processes.