Boar’s Head agreed to a $3.1 million class action settlement tied to a 2024 recall of certain ready-to-eat deli cold cuts that were potentially contaminated with *Listeria monocytogenes*, a bacterium that can cause serious illness, particularly for pregnant people, older adults, and those with weakened immune systems. The recall period covered products purchased in the U.S. between May 10, 2024, and August 12, 2024, and the settlement was designed to compensate consumers who bought items later pulled from shelves. Because many shoppers discard recalled food and may not keep receipts, the settlement offered different reimbursement levels depending on whether a claimant could provide proof of purchase, and payments reported by class members have been around the mid-$20 range (about $27). The lawsuit was filed primarily as an “economic loss” case: even if a consumer was never sick, they allegedly paid for products they couldn’t safely consume or had to throw away, creating out-of-pocket harm. Its significance is less about personal-injury damages and more about how large brands resolve recall-driven refund claims at scale—using a claims process, caps for no-receipt claims, and a settlement fund administered over time (with the claim deadline in May 2025 and checks mailed after review). The structure reflects a common approach in food-recall class actions and operates alongside the broader food-safety system regulated by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which oversees meat and poultry recalls, as well as federal labeling and sanitation rules aimed at preventing contamination in ready-to-eat products. More broadly, the Boar’s Head settlement fits a familiar pattern seen in other contamination and mislabeling cases involving packaged foods: companies may face parallel tracks of regulatory action (recalls, plant inspections, corrective measures) and consumer litigation focused on refunds rather than bodily injury. These cases also highlight ongoing industry pressures for tighter environmental monitoring in processing facilities, better traceability and lot coding, and faster, clearer consumer notice—especially because *Listeria* can persist in food-production environments and ready-to-eat meats don’t receive additional cooking by consumers that might otherwise reduce risk.