While the USDA is responsible for oversight of daily operations at meat processing plants such as Boar’s Head, the agency relied on staff from Virginia, who were not USDA employees, to do inspections as part of the State Cooperative Inspections Program which allows state employees to do federal inspections.

Deli meat manufacturer Boar's Head has announced it is indefinitely closing its Jarratt, Virginia, plant after a listeria outbreak that killed nine people in 18 states. However, the closure of this plant has now left the small town of under 1,000 people searching for their next move — and it may not be easy to find.

The embattled deli meat supplier has issued a WARN notice with the Virginia Employment Commission saying 600 jobs were impacted by its Jarratt plant closure. In late July, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was investigating a deadly listeria outbreak believed to be linked to deli meats.