Ex-Wilke CEO denies all charges in sausage scandal trial

The former chief executive of the meat producer Wilke has rejected all accusations leveled against him in a trial concerning a scandal involving listeria contamination.

Appearing before the Kassel Regional Court, the 57-year-old, along with his former deputy and the ex-head of production, faces charges of negligent homicide in eleven instances and negligent bodily harm in seven cases. Prosecutors contend that the company, Wilke Waldecker Fleisch- und Wurstwaren, supplied meat and sausage products tainted with listeria to the market for years.

The company, located in Twistetal, Hesse, was shuttered in October 2019 after listeria was detected in its sausages. The prosecution alleges that from 2015 to 2019, the accused allowed the production of contaminated sausages under "catastrophic hygienic conditions." They are accused of knowing the food was harmful but failing to inform authorities or recall the products, thus accepting potential health damage.

While his co-defendants remained silent, the former CEO, through his defense attorney, issued a statement asserting his complete innocence. He described Wilke as his "life's work" and stated that adhering to all legal requirements for consumer and product safety was always his highest priority. He claimed that responsibilities were clearly defined among the management and that he delegated the oversight of daily production hygiene and control processes to specialized and managerial levels. He asserted that he "never received any indication of concrete dangers, significant breaches of duty, or a structural failure of the established systems."