A third person has died and over 40 people have been hospitalized in a multi-state listeria food poisoning outbreak linked to Boar’s Head deli meats. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (‘CDC’ ) said in a press release Thursday that the three deaths have been in Illinois, New Jersey, and the latest in Virginia.

According to new numbers released by the CDC, nine more illnesses have been reported since the last update on July 31, bringing the total number of sickened patients from the outbreak to 43 across 13 states. The agency noted the true number of sick people is likely higher as all the documented ill patients were hospitalized, and some people may recover without medical care. The ill patients ranged from 32 to 94 years in age, with a median age of 77.

The CDC said in a statement Thursday: “Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback data show that meats sliced at deli counters, including Boar’s Head brand liverwurst, are contaminated with Listeria and are making people sick.”  The CDC said that the Maryland Department of Health and Baltimore City Health Department collected an unopened Boar’s Head liverwurst product from a retail store and identified Listeria monocytogenes. Additionally, a New York State Food Laboratory identified the bacteria from a previously collected sample of unopened Boar’s Head Liverwurst products collected from retail stores. Authorities determined both to be the same strain as the strain making people sick in this outbreak.

The CDC said a majority of patients interviewed by state and local public health officials reported in interviews to eating a variety of meats sliced at deli counters in the month prior to falling ill. Of 33 patients asked if they ate liverwurst, 55% said they ate deli-sliced liverwurst before getting sick and 13 reported eating Boar’s Head brand.

Boar’s Head recalled 7 million pounds of deli meats on July 30, expanding an initial recall on July 25 after a liverwurst sample collected by health officials in Maryland tested positive for listeria. The Boar’s Head recall includes over 70 products — including liverwurst, ham, beef salami and bologna — made at the company’s plant in Jarratt, Virginia, which was distributed to stores nationwide and the Cayman Islands, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Panama.  Boar’s Head already faces two lawsuits over the outbreak, one in a Missouri court and the other a class action suit in federal court in New York.

According to the Mayo Clinic, isteria infection is a food borne bacterial illness, most commonly caused by eating improperly processed deli meats and unpasteurized milk products. Symptoms usually appear within two weeks of eating contaminated food, and include fever, muscle aches, tiredness, stiff neck and confusion. In severe cases, the bacteria may cause a blood infection or meningitis. The infection is dangerous for those who are older, with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women, and those who fall into such categories are advised by the CDC to avoid deli meats. It’s the third-leading cause of death from food poisoning in the U.S.

Consumers should not eat the recalled meats and should discard them or return them to the store for a refund. Listeria bacteria can survive and grow in the refrigerator, so officials say people who had recalled products should thoroughly clean and sanitize the fridge to prevent contamination.

Editorial credit: M Outdoors / Shutterstock.com