WASHINGTON — Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) confirmed on Oct. 15 that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Inspector General Phyllis Fong opened an investigation into the agency’s handling of a Boar’s Head Virginia plant and its repeated violations leading up to the Listeria outbreak.

In the last few months, the USDA recalled millions of pounds of deli meat, which were linked to 10 deaths and 59 hospitalizations in 19 states, according to information by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“I welcome the Inspector General heeding my call for investigation of USDA’s abject failure to protect consumers against fatally contaminated Boar’s Head products,” Blumenthal said. “USDA took virtually no action — allowing Boar’s Head to continue business as usual at its chronically unsanitary Virginia plant — despite finding repeated serious violations. The Virginia plant should have been shut down years ago before people got sick or died from Listeria. The IG investigation is a vital first step to assure accountability and prevent such deadly mistakes from happening again.”

During September, Blumenthal wrote a letter to the USDA and Fong about his concerns that the facility was still in operation even after government inspectors found several instances that violated food safety rules and regulations.

According to Blumenthal, the Inspector General investigation will determine if proper corrective and enforcement action for reported noncompliance at the Boar’s Head plant was implemented and if the agency has an effective process to identify, elevate and address recurring noncompliance reported at state-inspected establishments to reduce the risk of adulterated products from entering the food supply.

Previously, Blumenthal and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) recently sent a letter asking the USDA to work closely with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to determine whether to bring criminal charges against Boar’s Head for this outbreak.

“We also urge the agency to initiate reforms to prevent similar situations from recurring at other facilities,” Blumenthal and DeLauro wrote last month. “In particular, the agency should revisit its regulations requiring establishments to test for Listeria in the processing environment and consider ways to strengthen those requirements, including revisiting the agency’s 2000 proposed rule requiring minimum sampling for Listeria on food contact surfaces.”

Both Blumenthal and DeLauro also asked USDA to investigate other Boar’s Head locations for possible safety violations.