Holocaust survivor died after eating Boar’s Head deli meat contaminated with listeria: lawsuit
The family of an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor who reportedly died after eating Boar’s Head deli meat contaminated with listeria has filed the first wrongful death lawsuit against the company since the nationwide outbreak.
Boar’s Head’s “negligence” in distributing the “defective and unreasonably dangerous” meats without “adequate warnings of the product’s dangers” led to the death of Virginia resident Günter Morgenstein, his family said in the lawsuit filed in Florida last week.
Morgenstein is among nine people who have died since the Boar’s Head listeria outbreak, with nearly 60 others hospitalized, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Over the past year, Boar’s Head’s Jarratt, Va.-based plant has racked up dozens of violations – including reports of mold, mildew, insects and pools of blood throughout the facility, The Post previously reported.
Boar’s Head did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The husband, father and Holocaust survivor purchased Boar’s Head liverwurst and other Boar’s Head products at a Harris Teeter supermarket on June 30, according to the lawsuit.
He ate the products on sandwiches over the next few days.
“He subsequently became ill, suffering from weakness, diarrhea, fatigue, and a fever,” the family said in the lawsuit.
Morgenstein’s condition continued to worsen and he was eventually hospitalized on July 8, the suit said.
His blood culture tested positive for listeria bacteria after he “ingested listeria” from the Boar’s Head products, according to the suit.
Morgenstein became very ill, developing listeriosis, encephalitis, meningitis, and sepsis as a result of the contaminated meat, the complaint alleged.
Morgenstein died after a 10-day stay in the hospital. His cause of death was listed as listeria meningoencephalitis, a deadly bacterial infection that can cause brain abscess, according to a copy of his death certificate obtained by The Post.
“Günter was a great man who lived an extraordinary life. He should not have died from eating a sandwich,” Ron Simon, attorney for the Morgenstein family and several other listeria victims, told The Post in a statement.
“He showed his courage in facing life challenges with a smile, and stayed strong until the end,” his obituary said.
Morgenstein left East Berlin with “just the clothes on his back” in 1954, according to his obituary.
He worked as a “master” hairdresser for more than 70 years, his obituary said.
The family’s lawyer said they want to “make sure that all listeria victims are fairly compensated for their losses” and “force Boar’s Head to make sure it never happens again.”
Morgenstein’s family said they are “devastated” by his death.
“He was a caring husband, a proud father, and a good friend to all who knew him,” the family told The Post in a statement. “We hope to bring awareness and changes to the dangerous and unsanitary conditions at Boar’s Head, so that others don’t suffer the same fate.”
Boar’s Head recalled 7 million pounds of deli meat in July after its liverwurst tested positive for listeria.
Customers have been falling ill across the country. The family-owned business, founded in 1905 in Brooklyn, is headquartered in Sarasota, Fla.
New York has been hit especially hard. The state health department is investigating 17 listeria cases – including eight in the Big Apple alone.
At least one of the nine outbreak-related deaths occurred in New York, federal agencies said last week.
It is the worst listeria outbreak since 2011, when 147 people fell ill and 33 died after eating contaminated cantaloupe.
Supermarkets and delis across New York have seen sales of Boar’s Head meats plunge as much as 30% as consumers have grown wary of the iconic cold cut’s stained brand, The Post exclusively reported.
Boar’s Head was founded in 1905 in Brooklyn.
