U.S. Agriculture Department officials have launched an internal investigation into how the agency handled reports of serious problems at a Boar’s Head deli meat plant tied to a deadly listeria outbreak, a lawmaker said Tuesday.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal said USDA Inspector General Phyllis Fong is looking into whether federal investigators and Virginia state inspectors responded appropriately to dozens of reports of problems at the factory, including mold, insects, dripping water and meat and fat residue on walls, floors and equipment. Inspection reports dating back at least two years indicated that the conditions could pose an “imminent threat” to food safety.

At least 10 people died and nearly 50 were hospitalized in 19 states since May after eating listeria-contaminated Boar’s Head products, including liverwurst, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After recalling more than 7 million pounds of deli meat distributed nationwide, Boar’s Head officials shuttered the plant in Jarratt, Virginia, and permanently stopped making liverwurst.

Bath and Body Works offers apology

Bath & Body Works pulled a candle from store shelves after getting complaints the label resembled hooded KKK figures.

The wintery candle, called “Snowed In,” was designed with a stylized paper snowflake theme. However, the partially obscured image also reminded some social media critics of the hoods and robes worn by the Ku Klux Klan during decades of terror starting in the late 1800s. Some referred to the item as a “klandle” or a “Klan Krismas Kandle.”

“This wasn’t an accident,” one Instagram poster alleged.

“It’s just a poorly executed design — that shouldn’t have been approved,” another Instagram user offered.

The company yanked the candle from online and physical retail and issued an apology.

“We apologize to anyone we’ve offended and are swiftly working to have this item removed and are evaluating our process going forward,” a spokesperson said.

Lufthansa fined $4 Million for treatment of orthodox passengers

The U.S. fined German airline Lufthansa $4 million for its treatment of a group of Jewish passengers who were denied boarding a 2022 flight in Frankfurt after they had flown to Germany from New York.

The U.S. Transportation Department said Tuesday that the fine is the largest the agency has issued against an airline for civil-rights violations, although Lufthansa was given credit for $2 million for compensation it gave the passengers, cutting the fine in half.

The department said most of the 128 passengers who were denied boarding “wore distinctive garb typically worn by Orthodox Jewish men.” Although many did not know each other and were not traveling together, they told investigators that Lufthansa treated them as if they were a group and denied boarding to all over alleged misbehavior by a few passengers.

They were among 131 passengers who were flying from New York through Frankfurt to Budapest to attend an annual memorial event to honor an Orthodox rabbi.

Lufthansa rejected “any allegation by the Department that the events in this matter resulted from any form of discrimination” and disputes that any employee acted on bias, but it acknowledged “errors in company procedure and communications.”

Compiled from Associated Press and Bloomberg reports.