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Ford hits the pedal on EV production with $2 billion overhaul of Kentucky plant

SUMMARY:

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Ford Motor Co. will invest nearly $2 billion retooling a Kentucky factory to produce electric vehicles that it says will be more affordable, more profitable to build and will outcompete rival models.

The automaker’s top executive unveiled the new EV strategy at Ford’s Louisville Assembly Plant which, after producing gas-powered vehicles for 70 years, will be converted to manufacture .

“In our careers, as automobile we’re lucky if we get to work on one, maybe two, projects that really change the face of our industry,” CEO Jim Farley told plant workers in Kentucky on Monday. “And I believe today is going to light the match as one of those projects for all of us here.”

The Big Detroit automakers have continued to transition from internal combustion engines to EV technology even as ‘s administration unwinds incentives for automakers to go electric. Trump’s massive tax and spending targets EV incentives, including the imminent removal of a credit that saves buyers up to $7,500 on a new electric car.

Yet Farley and other top executives in the auto industry say that electric vehicles are the future and there is no going back.

The first EV to be produced by the revamped Louisville production process will be a midsize, four-door electric pickup truck in 2027 for domestic and international markets, the company said Monday.

The new electric trucks will feature plenty of interior space to fit five adults and pack enough power to have a targeted 0-60 time as fast as a Mustang EcoBoost but with more downforce, Ford said

The electric trucks will be powered by lower-cost batteries made at a Ford factory in Michigan. The Detroit automaker previously announced a $3 billion investment to build the battery factory.

The automaker sees this as a “Model T moment” for its EV business — a reference to revolutionary changes on the production line led by the company’s founder, Henry Ford, when it began churning out vehicles from a factory more than a century ago. Farley said the changes will upend how electric vehicles are made in the U.S.

“It represents the most radical change on how we design and how we build vehicles at Ford since the Model T,” Farley said.

The company said it will use a universal platform and production system for its EVs, essentially the underpinning of a vehicle that can be applied across a wide range of models.

The Louisville factory — one of two Ford assembly plants in Kentucky’s largest city — will be revamped to cut production costs and make assembly time faster as it’s prepared to churn out electric vehicles.

The result will be “an affordable electric vehicle that we expect to be profitable,” Farley said in an interview with The Associated Press ahead of the announcement. “This is an example of us rejuvenating our U.S. plants with the most modern techniques.”

The new platform enables a lineup of affordable vehicles to be produced at scale, Ford said. It will reduce parts by 20% versus a typical vehicle, with 25% fewer fasteners, 40% fewer workstations dock-to-dock in the plant and a 15% faster assembly time, Ford said.

The traditional assembly line will be transformed into an “assembly tree” at the Louisville plant, the company said. Instead of one long conveyor, three subassembly lines will operate simultaneously and then join together, it said.

Other specifications for the midsize – including its reveal date, starting price, EPA-estimated battery range, battery sizes and charge times — will be announced later, the company said. Farley revealed that the truck will have a targeted starting price of about $30,000.

Ford said its investment in the Louisville plant will secure 2,200 hourly jobs.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday that the automaker’s plans for the Louisville plant will strengthen a more than century-old partnership between Ford and the Bluegrass State.

“This announcement not only represents one of the largest investments on record in our state, it also boosts Kentucky’s position at the center of EV-related innovation and solidifies Louisville Assembly Plant as an important part of Ford’s future,” Beshear said.

Ford said its combined investment of about $5 billion at the Kentucky assembly plant and Michigan battery plant is expected to create or secure nearly 4,000 direct jobs between the two plants while strengthening the domestic supply chain with dozens of new U.S.-based suppliers.

Ford previously forecast weaker earnings growth for this year and further losses in its electric vehicles business as it works to control costs. Model e, Ford’s electric vehicle business, posted a full-year loss of $5.08 billion for 2024 as revenue fell 35% to $3.9 billion.

Ford’s new EV strategy comes as Chinese automakers are quickly expanding across the globe, offering relatively affordable electric vehicles.

“We’re not in a race to build the most electric cars,” Farley told the AP when asked about competition from China. “We’re in a race to have a sustainable electric business that’s profitable, that customers love.

“And this new vehicle built in Louisville, Kentucky, is going to be a much better solution to anything that anyone can buy from China,” he added.

Ford could have opted to launch its EV project overseas to reap lower-cost labor and currency advantages but instead is “taking the fight to our competition” from the plant in Kentucky, Farley said at Monday’s event. But the Ford CEO cautioned that “there are no guarantees” with project.

“We’re doing so many new things I can’t tell you with 100% certainty that this will all go just right,” he said. “It is a bet. There is risk. The automotive industry has a graveyard littered with affordable vehicles that were launched in our country with all good intentions. And they fizzled out with idle plants, laid off workers and red ink. And at Ford … we set out to break that cycle.”

US stocks drift around their record heights as Wall Street braces for an update on inflation

SUMMARY:

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. are drifting around their record heights on Monday as waits for an upcoming update on inflation.

The S&P 500 fell 0.1% and is just below its all-time high set two weeks ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 203 points, or 0.5%, with a little more than an hour remaining in trading, and the Nasdaq composite was down 0.1%, coming off its own record.

The highlight of this week for Wall Street is likely to arrive on Tuesday, when the government will report how bad inflation was across the country in July. Economists expect it to show U.S. consumers had to pay prices for groceries, gasoline and other costs of living that were 2.8% higher in July from a year earlier, a slight acceleration from June’s 2.7% inflation.

Inflation has remained above 2%, even if it has improved substantially from its peak above 9% three years ago. And the worry is that President Donald Trump’s tariffs could push inflation higher.

That in turn is raising fears about a potential, worst-case scenario called “stagflation” where the economy stagnates but inflation remains high. The Federal Reserve has no good tool to fix both at once, and it would need to concentrate on either the job market or inflation first. But helping one of those areas by moving interest rates would likely hurt the other.

A top Fed official, Michelle Bowman, said on Saturday that she believes the job market is the bigger concern. She is still backing three cuts to interest rates by the Fed this year following this month’s stunning, weaker-than-expected report on the U.S. job market. Trump himself has also been angrily calling for cuts to interest rates to support the economy.

Other Fed officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, have been more hesitant. Powell has said he wants to wait for more data about how Trump’s tariffs are affecting inflation before the Fed makes its next move, and Tuesday’s update on the consumer price index may offer a big clue about that.

Strategists at Stifel are warning that stagflation may already be on the way, with spending by U.S. consumers slowing, and they warn that it could cause the U.S. economy to slow to a crawl by the second half of the year. That in turn could create a reckoning for investors after they sent stock prices soaring to records from their low point in April.

“Rate cuts cannot save an overvalued S&P 500,” according to the strategists, led by Thomas Carroll and Barry Bannister.

One way companies can make their stock prices appear less expensive is to deliver bigger profits.

Micron Technology climbed 3% Monday after raising its forecasts for profit and revenue in the current quarter, which will end later this month. The maker of memory for computers said it’s benefiting from higher prices for its products.

AMC Entertainment rose 2.6% to shave its loss for the year so far, which came into the day at 26.4% after it reported better results for the spring than analysts expected. The theater chain said moviegoers paid more for their tickets per person than ever before, while also spending more on food and drinks.

TKO Group Holdings climbed 9.1% after reaching a deal to distribute its UFC mixed martial arts matches on the Paramount+ streaming platform. But Paramount Skydance’s stock dropped 4.1%.

Also on the losing side of Wall Street was C3.ai after the AI application software company warned it may report an operating loss as large as $124.9 million for its first quarter. CEO Thomas Siebel called the first-quarter sales results “completely unacceptable,” and its stock tumbled 26.1%.

The price of gold eased after Trump said he would not place tariffs on the metal. That followed Friday’s mini-freakout in the gold market after the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol seemed to rule that some kinds of gold bars coming from Switzerland would face a tariff. That in turn caused a disconnect between the prices of gold trading in New York versus in London, but the market has since calmed.

Gold for December delivery settled at $3,404.70 per ounce in New York, down 2.5%.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed amid mostly modest movements across Europe and Asia.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.27%, where it was late Friday.

US will get a 15% cut of Nvidia and AMD chip sales to China under a new, unusual agreement

SUMMARY:

NEW YORK (AP) — Nvidia and AMD have agreed to share 15% of their revenues from chip sales to China with the U.S. government, as part of a deal to secure export licenses for the semiconductors.

The halted the sale of advanced computer chips to China in April over national security concerns, but Nvidia and AMD revealed in July that Washington would allow them to resume sales of the H20 and MI308 chips, which are used in development.

President Trump confirmed the terms of the unusual arrangement in a Monday press conference while noting that he originally wanted 20% of the sales revenue when Nvidia asked to sell the “obsolete” H20 chip to China. The president credited Nvidia CEO for negotiating him down to 15%.

“So we negotiated a little deal. So he’s selling a essentially old chip,” Trump said.

Nvidia did not comment about the specific details of the agreement or its quid pro quo nature, but said they would adhere to the export rules laid out by the administration.

“We follow rules the U.S. government sets for our participation in worldwide markets. While we haven’t shipped H20 to China for months, we hope export control rules will let America compete in China and worldwide,” Nvidia wrote in a statement to the AP. “America cannot repeat 5G and lose telecommunication leadership. America’s AI tech stack can be the world’s standard if we race.”

AMD did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Rep. John Moolenaar, the Republican chair of the House Select Committee on China, expressed concern over the deal.

“There are questions about the legal basis for doing so,” he said. “ are a frontline defense in protecting our national security, and we should not set a precedent that incentivizes the government to grant licenses to sell China technology that will enhance its AI capabilities.”

The top Democrat on the panel also raised concerns over the reported agreement, calling it “a dangerous misuse of export controls that undermines our national security.”

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking member of the House Select Committee on China, said he would seek answers about the legal basis for this arrangement and demand full transparency from the administration.

“Our export control regime must be based on genuine security considerations, not creative taxation schemes disguised as national security policy,” he said. “Chip export controls aren’t bargaining chips, and they’re not casino chips either. We shouldn’t be gambling with our national security to raise revenue.”

Derek Scissors, senior fellow and China expert at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, reiterated Moolenaar’s point about the constitutionality of the deal.

“There’s no precedent for this, probably because export taxes are unconstitutional, ” said Derek Scissors, senior fellow and China expert at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. “They call it a fee, but 15% of sales revenue is about a standard a tax as it comes. For this reason, I don’t think the ‘arrangement’ is at all durable. ‘’

“If it were to last, it has two possible implications. First, there’s a possible export tax that high-profile companies and goods must consider. Or the tax only applies in exceptional situations, such as changing export controls. Then we’d risk national security for the sake of tax revenue, which is effectively the same as cutting the defense budget,” Scissors said.

Back in July, Nvidia argued that tight export controls around their chip sales would cost the company an extra $5.5 billion. They’ve argued that such limits hinder U.S. competition in a sector in one of the world’s largest markets for technology, and have also warned that U.S. export controls could end up pushing other countries toward China’s .

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC in July that the renewed sale of Nvidia’s chips in China was linked to a trade agreement made between the two countries on rare earth magnets.

Restrictions on sales of advanced chips to China have been central to the AI race between the world’s two largest economic powers, but such controls are also controversial. Proponents argue that these restrictions are necessary to slow China down enough to allow U.S. companies to keep their lead. Meanwhile, opponents say the export controls have loopholes — and could still spur innovation. The emergence of China’s DeepSeek AI chatbot in January particularly renewed concerns over how China might use advanced chips to help develop its own AI capabilities.

—-

Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Shawn Chen, Didi Tang and Paul Wiseman contributed to the reporting.

Peraton taps new chief growth officer

Former executive Ravi Dankanikote began a new role on Monday as the for -based .

In the role, Dankanikote will spearhead Peraton’s enterprise growth strategy, lead business development and build and strengthen customer relationships. He succeeds Mike King, who left the company in March.

“Ravi is not just a growth executive — he’s a systems thinker, a connector and a values-driven leader,” Peraton President and CEO Steve Schorer said in a statement. “His ability to align strategy, culture and execution is exactly what we need at this stage in our evolution. He’s going to be a catalyst for growth that defines the next chapter of our company.”

Dankanikote has more than 30 years of experience in federal contracting. He was most recently senior vice president of business development at SAIC, a role he held for almost five years. Before that, he worked at CACI International for over 27 years, holding various executive roles.

Peraton says that Dankanikote’s leadership style “stands out for its emphasis on open communication, ecosystem thinking and principled execution.”

“Our business doesn’t succeed by chasing trends — it thrives by solving real problems with ingenuity and integrity,” Dankanikote said in a statement. “We must lead with a ‘best of’ enterprise mindset while staying deeply connected to our ecosystem of partners and academic collaborators. It’s not just about offering a solution — it’s about offering the right solution: one that’s differentiated, executable and built on trust.”

Dankanikote holds a master’s degree in computer science from Pennsylvania’s Shippensburg University and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from R V College of Engineering in Bangalore, India.

Peraton is owned by Veritas Capital, which established the government contracting firm in 2017. Four years later, Peraton purchased Chantilly-based IT contractor Perspecta and Northrop Grumman’s federal IT and mission support services businesses for a total of $10.5 billion. In 2023, Peraton moved its headquarters from Herndon to Reston. The company has more than 18,000 employees.

Trump eyes Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac IPO in 2025

SUMMARY:

  • plans to sell 5%–15% of Fannie, Freddie stock
  • Sale could raise $30 billion; valuation exceeds $500 billion
  • Critics warn move could raise mortgage rates, tighten credit

The Trump administration is prepping to sell stock in and , the government-sponsored home mortgage companies, later this year, according to reporting Friday by The Journal.

Based in McLean, Freddie Mac is Virginia’s top-ranked company on the and Fortune Global 500 lists. Fannie Mae is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

Officials in the administration, according to the WSJ, valued the companies at about $500 billion or more and said the plans involve selling between 5% and 15% of the companies’ stock, which is anticipated to raise about $30 billion. It is unclear if the companies would be bundled together or whether they would remain government-sponsored entities, according to the Journal’s sources.

In May, wrote on Truth Social that he was considering taking Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae public. “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are doing very well, throwing off a lot of CASH, and the time would seem to be right,” he wrote.

Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have been under government control since the 2008 financial crisis. “This was supposed to be a stopgap measure,” explained David Bieri, associate professor in the school of public and international affairs and associate professor of economics at Virginia Tech.

During his first term, Trump tried to take Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae private but was unsuccessful.

Opponents to selling stock in the companies warn it could cause mortgage rates to go up and tighten available credit.

As for Bieri, he cautions that the devil is the details. “There are a number of regulatory design questions that need to be asked,” he said.

Overall, however, Bieri considers talk of selling shares of the mortgage companies to be positive.

“As of today, the U.S. is effectively nationalized, which is an insane condition for a country that  prides itself in the principles of free enterprise,” he said.

U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, Virginia’s senior senator, and other Senate Democrats sent a June 5 letter to William J. Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Financing Administration, expressing concern that the Trump administration might make “significant changes to the [Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac] Enterprises in a way that would put investor profits over the homes of millions of Americans.”

The letter continued: “Should President Trump make good on his plans, he may take us back to the status quo before the 2008 foreclosure crisis, when the Enterprises’ investors enjoyed the full profits that come with privatization while knowing taxpayers would be on the hook for any future failures.”

In March, the Trump administration axed Diana Reid as Freddie Mac’s CEO. Freddie Mac President Michael Hutchins took over as interim. In June, he agreed to continue his dual roles until Sept. 30 or when a permanent leader is appointed.

Freddie Mac reported a net revenue of $23.9 billion in 2024, up from $21.2 billion in 2023. It was ranked No. 38 on the 2025 Fortune 500.

Judge voids massive Prince William Digital Gateway project

SUMMARY:

  • Judge rules that county supervisors’ approval vote in 2023 is void
  • Win for 12 Gainesville residents who oppose massive data center campus
  • could be appealed

After their appeal was turned down last month in a different , a group of residents won a battle in their war against the Prince William Digital Gateway, as a circuit court judge voided the massive data center project this week.

On Thursday, Prince William Circuit Judge Kimberly A. Irving ruled in favor of 12 Gainesville residents, known collectively as Oak Valley Homeowners Association, who sued the Prince William Board of Supervisors and the two developers of the project. The Digital Gateway would add as many as 23 million square feet of on 2,100 acres and is considered the world’s largest data center project.

Attorneys for developers H&H Capital Acquisitions and GW Acquisition Co. did not respond to requests for comment Friday.

Irving’s ruling came after a Virginia Court of Appeals decision July 22 against the Oak Valley plaintiffs, which ruled that the county board of supervisors does not have a statutory obligation to consider public input before land-use decisions, upholding a lower court’s ruling.

In December 2023, the county board, including its lame-duck chair, voted to approve rezoning 1,790 acres to allow the project to move forward, following a 29-hour public hearing in which many residents spoke in opposition.

Irving ruled Thursday that the vote was void because the county did not comply with advertising policies established by the state and county to allow the public sufficient notice about the rezoning vote. She also ruled that 10 of the 12 plaintiffs have standing to sue because they “were not only located close to the rezonings but faced a substantial risk of particularized harm as well.”

The Prince William County attorney’s office is reviewing the decision and will advise the county board of supervisors on its next action, a spokesperson said Monday.

The decision could be appealed by the defendants, but it marks a victory for the plaintiffs.

“We were obviously ecstatic with the decision by Judge Irving. … This is a great victory for citizens to have transparent and accountable government,” said Mac Haddow, president of the homeowners association and a plaintiff. “This is going to set a precedent for future decisions by the county board of supervisors” that have impact on homeowners. It’s an “important step to protect our quality of life and our property values going forward.”

He said that his group includes residents of 254 homes, plus other plaintiffs with property adjacent to the data center site, and he expects the developers to appeal.

Haddow said Friday that he and the rest of the plaintiffs want the county to hold a new hearing, advertise it and vote again, and hope the county “won’t spend another penny of our taxpayer money [fighting a case] that’s unwinnable as clearly defined in Judge Irving’s decision.” 

Virginia Business Editor and Associate Publisher Richard Foster contributed to this story.

Wall Street clocks another winning week

Summary

  • U.S. notch another week of gains
  • Investors digest mixed corporate earnings reports
  • Economic data shapes market sentiment
  • S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq end week higher

U.S. stocks closed higher Friday, capping a choppy week of trading with the market’s third winning week in the last four and another milestone.

The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, finishing just shy of the record it set last week. The benchmark index also wiped out its losses from a slide last week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite added 1% to the all-time high it set a day earlier.

Technology companies, with their hefty stock values, did much of the heavy lifting for the market. rose 1.1% and Apple gained 4.2%.

Gilead Sciences jumped 8.3% for one of the market’s biggest gains. It reported financial results that easily beat analysts’ forecasts, while also raising its earnings forecast for the year. Expedia Group rose 4.1% after also reporting encouraging financial results.

They are among the final big batch of companies within the S&P 500 to report mostly strong financial results for the second quarter. Still, many have warned that current could cut into their profits.

Financial sector stocks also helped drive the market higher. Bank of America gained 2.4% and Mastercard rose 2.3%.

Elsewhere in the market, entertainment giant Paramount Skydance slid 10.5% a day after the company was created by the closing of an $8 billion merger of Skydance and Paramount. Shares in rival Warner Bros. Discovery sank 8%.

The main focus throughout the week has been on ‘s war and its potential impact on the U.S. economy, as well as the ‘s interest rate policy. Trump began imposing higher import taxes on dozens of countries Thursday.

Still, the market appeared to largely shrug off the latest tariff escalation.

“The S&P 500’s rebound this week may highlight the extent to which the market is becoming numb to tariff headlines,” said Daniel Skelly, head of Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Management Market Research & Strategy Team.

The unknown path of the economy amid an unpredictable tariff policy has been the key reason for the Fed to hold its benchmark interest rate steady.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell, though, has been under increasing pressure from Trump to cut interest rates. Policy decisions aren’t made solely by the Fed chair. All 12 members of the Federal Open Market Committee vote on interest rate changes.

Trump has an opportunity to exert more control over the Fed following his nomination of Stephen Miran to a vacancy on the Fed’s board of governors. Miran is a top economic adviser to Trump and is a near-certain vote in support of lower interest rates.

The Fed’s last decision to hold interest rates steady included two votes to lower interest rates. Its next meeting is in September, and is overwhelmingly betting that the central bank will cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point.

Treasury yields edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.28% from 4.25% late Thursday. The yield on the two-year Treasury which more closely tracks expectations for Fed actions, rose to 3.76% from 3.73% late Thursday.

The expectation for an interest rate cut follows a series of signals last week that the economy could be weakening. That included reports showing that edged higher in June and employers in the U.S. hit the brakes on hiring in July.

Both are key concerns for the Fed, which has been trying to cool inflation down to its target rate of 2% while also fulfilling its “full employment” mandate.

Lower interest rates can give the economy and investment prices a boost, though the downside is that they can also push inflation higher. Concerns about inflation reheating could be overshadowed by worries about a weakening employment market.

Wall Street and the Fed will get more insight next week on inflation’s temperature and the economy. The government will release updates on inflation at both the consumer and wholesale levels, along with a report on retail sales.

“We believe stocks will stay supported amid solid fundamentals, but fresh headlines in the coming week may challenge investor sentiment that remains vulnerable to tariff, economic, and geopolitical risks,” said Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi, chief investment officer for the Americas and global head of equities at UBS Global Wealth Management.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 49.45 points to 6,389.45. The Dow rose 206.97 points to 44,175.61, and the Nasdaq rose 207.32 points to finish at 21,450.02.

Asian markets closed mostly lower except in Tokyo, where the Nikkei rose 1.9% after Japan’s main trade envoy said the U.S. had agreed to correct a problem over tariffs that will apply to exports to the U.S.

European markets were mixed.

Trump removes Billy Long as IRS commissioner less than 2 months after his confirmation

WASHINGTON (AP) — has removed former U.S. Rep. Billy Long as IRS commissioner less than two months after his confirmation, a White House official said Friday.

The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, did not give a reason for the dismissal. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will serve as acting commissioner, the official said.

The Senate confirmed Long on a 53-44 vote despite Democrats’ concerns about the Republican’s past work for a firm that pitched a fraud-ridden coronavirus pandemic-era tax break and about campaign contributions he received after Trump nominated him.

While in Congress, where he served from 2011 to 2023, Long sponsored legislation to get rid of the IRS. A former auctioneer, Long has no background in tax administration.

Boar’s Head to reopen plant despite sanitation concerns

Summary

  • Boar’s Head plans to reopen troubled deli meat facility
  • Past inspections flagged and safety concerns
  • Company says upgrades will address contamination risks
  • advocates urge stricter oversight before reopening

The deli meat plant at the heart of last year’s deadly food poisoning outbreak is set to reopen in the coming months, company officials said.

But recent inspections at Boar’s Head sites in three states documented sanitation problems similar to those that led to the listeria contamination that killed 10 and sickened dozens.

The Jarratt, Virginia, plant was shut down in September when U.S. Agriculture Department officials suspended operations and withdrew the federal marks of inspection required to operate, saying the company “failed to maintain sanitary conditions.” Boar’s Head permanently stopped making liverwurst and recalled more than 7 million pounds of deli products.

USDA officials this week said they had “thoroughly reviewed” the plant and lifted the forced suspension on July 18.

“The facility is in full compliance of the guidelines and protocols set for the safe handling and production of food and the serious issues that led to suspension have been fully rectified,” officials with the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said in an email Wednesday.

And yet, documents obtained by The Associated Press through a freedom of information request show that Boar’s Head plants in Arkansas, Indiana and elsewhere in Virginia were flagged for the same kinds of sanitation problems that led to the outbreak, with the most recent report in June.

In the past seven months, government inspectors reported problems that include instances of meat and fat residue left on equipment and walls, drains blocked with meat products, beaded condensation on ceilings and floors, overflowing trash cans, and staff who didn’t wear protective hairnets and plastic aprons — or wash their hands.

The records, which included USDA noncompliance reports logged by inspectors from Jan. 1 through July 23, raise new questions about the company’s promises to address systemic problems and about federal oversight of listeria contamination in plants that make ready-to-eat foods.

“If there is evidence that food safety problems are continuing, the government needs to make sure the company fixes them,” said Sandra Eskin, a former USDA official who now heads STOP Foodborne Illness, a consumer group focused on food safety.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins last month announced plans to bolster efforts that combat foodborne germs, including listeria.

posted in Virginia

Officials at Boar’s Head, the 120-year-old company based in Sarasota, Florida, have posted job openings for two dozen positions, including a food safety quality analyst, at the Jarratt site.

The company convened a panel of expert advisers last fall and hired a chief food safety officer in May. The advisers include Frank Yiannas, a former U.S. Food and Drug Administration official, and Mindy Brashears, ‘s nominee for USDA’s undersecretary for food safety.

Boar’s Head last year said they “regret and deeply apologize” for the contamination and that “comprehensive measures are being implemented to prevent such an incident from ever happening again.”

But company officials refused to discuss the problems found this year. They canceled a scheduled AP interview with Natalie Dyenson, the new food safety officer. And they declined to allow Yiannas to detail the investigation he led into the contamination’s cause.

Brashears, who now directs a food safety center at Texas Tech University, did not respond to requests for comment about the Boar’s Head problems. An automatic email reply said the USDA nominee was traveling out of the country until Aug. 25. She remains on the company’s food safety board.

“Boar’s Head has an unwavering commitment to food safety and quality. That commitment is reflected in recent enhancements to our practices and protocols” described on the company’s website, Boar’s Head said in an emailed statement.

“We have also been working with the USDA in developing a plan to reopen our Jarratt facility in a measured, deliberate way in the coming months,” the statement said.

Inadequate sanitation practices

The 35 pages of new inspection findings cover Boar’s Head sites in Forrest City, Arkansas; New Castle, Indiana; and Petersburg, Virginia.

They surprised outside food safety advocates, who said that factory conditions should have improved in the year since the outbreak was first identified.

“You would have expected after all they went through that they would put themselves in a place where you could essentially eat deli meat off the factory floor,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy for Consumer Reports, an advocacy group.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro called the findings “appalling.”

“This is a pattern of negligence — cutting corners to protect the company’s bottom line at the expense of consumers and these conditions show a complete disregard for food safety and for the public health of the American people,” the Connecticut Democrat said in a statement.

The findings echo the “inadequate sanitation practices” that USDA officials said contributed to the outbreak. Key factors included product residue, condensation and structural problems in the buildings, a January report concluded.

At the Jarratt plant, state inspectors working in partnership with USDA had documented mold, insects, liquid dripping from ceilings, and meat and fat residue on walls, floors and equipment, the AP previously reported.

While no instances of insects were documented in this year’s inspection reports, there were repeated reports of “dried fat and protein from the previous day’s production” on equipment, stairs and walls. In April, an inspector at the Petersburg plant reported finding discarded meat underneath equipment, including “5-6 hams, 4 large pieces of meat and a large quantity of pooling meat juice.”

Other reports detailed beaded condensation “directly over the food contact surfaces of tables and conveyor belts.” Additional reports documented rusting meat racks, doors that failed to close completely and staff who ignored required handwashing stations.

The reports point to a “food safety culture problem,” said Barbara Kowalcyk, who directs a food safety and nutrition security center at George Washington University.

“What jumped out to me is there is an organizational culture issue that needs to be changed,” she said. “Usually that culture has to start at the top.”

In the meantime, she advised consumers to think carefully about deli meat consumption. Older people and those who are pregnant or have weakened immune systems are especially vulnerable to serious illness from listeria infections.

“I think they need to be aware that there are issues at this organization that still are not completely under control, apparently,” Kowalcyk said.

Boar’s Head faced multiple lawsuits from people who fell ill or from the families of those who died. Several survivors declined to comment publicly on the new problems, citing financial settlements with the company that included nondisclosure agreements.

HCA plans $260M hospital in Chesterfield County


SUMMARY:

  • Virginia plans to build a $260 million, 60-bed in
  • It aims to open by 2029–2030, pending zoning and state approval
  • Local leaders support it to avoid overcrowded hospitals and long EMS transport times

plans to construct a new $260 million hospital in Chesterfield County, citing the county’s growing population.

In a July filing with the , the health system detailed a plan to build a 60-bed acute care hospital — known as Magnolia Hospital — on an approximately 24-acre property in , located at 16100, 16300, and 16500 Hull Street Road.

Magnolia Hospital would contain 54 medical/surgical beds, six intensive care unit beds, four general-purpose operating rooms and one MRI scanner. HCA says it anticipates adding approximately 360 full-time workers, including 142 registered nurses, to staff the new facility.

The new HCA hospital would be at a “highly accessible” location at the epicenter of population growth in the county, HCA said in its application to the state health department. In an area of high population growth where traffic congestion can hinder timely access to health care, HCA contends, the new hospital would meaningfully improve health care access for patients.

Gaining more than 30,000 residents since 2020, Chesterfield County has led the state in population growth in recent years. HCA’s application for the hospital noted that the county’s population is approaching 400,000, with continued growth projected into the coming decade.

Shaila Menees, chief development officer of ‘s capital division, told Virginia Business that the goal of the new hospital is to be as close to ‘s homes as possible, thereby reducing the travel time necessary for them to receive health care.

“We are thrilled to be able to put this kind of an asset in this area,” she said. “I think the intent is to meet the community where they are and to provide services that are desirable for those that are in the community today and will be in the community in the future.”

The land for Magnolia Hospital, currently zoned by the county for a mix of agricultural and general business uses, will need to be rezoned to Community Business District. Attorney Andy Condlin of firm Roth Jackson is representing HCA in its rezoning request.

The health system is under contract to purchase property for the hospital from limited liability company Nunnally Village, depending on whether the site gets zoning approval and a state certificate of public need. The state health commissioner hadn’t yet decided whether to grant HCA’s request for Magnolia Hospital; Menees says it will likely be nine to 12 months before a decision is made.

In addition to helping underserved areas of Chesterfield, Magnolia Hospital will also be an asset for Amelia and Powhatan counties, as the hospital will be located near an expansion of Powhite Parkway planned to open in 2030.

In HCA’s state application, the project received support from Chesterfield County Administrator Joseph Casey, the Powhatan County Fire & Rescue Department and Amelia County.

Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services said that patients are often transported outside of the county’s boundaries due to existing county hospitals being at capacity. “This results in significantly increased patient transport times and keeps ambulances away from their primary service areas longer and unable to respond to the next emergency,” the agency wrote.

Casey wrote, “The need for Magnolia is clear. Placing these resources closer to where patients live and work will incentivize patients to obtain needed care sooner before their medical conditions worsen, which will speed recovery, reduce costs, and result in a healthier and more productive community.”

According to HCA’s application with the state, HCA’s Chippenham Hospital, located just outside the county border in Richmond, was established in 1972, when the county’s population was 86,000. In 1980, relocated from Richmond to Chesterfield to meet the needs of the county’s growing population, which at the time was 141,000. However, the application notes that Chesterfield’s population had grown to 394,825 as of July 2024 and is projected to reach 407,000 by 2030.

The exact timeline for when Magnolia Hospital could open isn’t set in stone, but Menees said it will likely be 43 months following state approval of the certificate of public need, so the new hospital would likely be ready to open in 2029 or 2030.

Part of Nashville-based HCA Healthcare, HCA Virginia operates 14 hospitals, 26 outpatient centers, eight freestanding emergency rooms and is affiliated with more than 3,100 physicians. With more than 300,000 employees, HCA Healthcare has 190 hospitals and approximately 2,400 ambulatory sites of care in 20 states and the United Kingdom. It reported $70.603 billion in 2024 revenue.