The factory manager and a company director implicated in a deadly outbreak of listeriosis are accused of trying to deceive the Ministry for Primary Industries over laboratory reports on suspect meat.

In the Napier District Court yesterday, lawyers entered not guilty pleas for Napier company Bay Cuisine, its director Garth Wise, and factory manager Christopher Mackie.

Wise, 53, faces four charges, Mackie, 41, six, and the company 153 charges.

The three parties will face a judge-alone trial in the Hastings District Court after May.

One of the charges the men face carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $100,000.

The outbreak, which occurred in mid-2012, claimed the life of 68-year-old Patricia Hutchinson on June 9 that year, and contributed to the death of an 81-year-old woman on July 9. Two other people were infected.

Listeria was found in pre-packaged ready-to-eat meats that had been supplied to Hawke’s Bay Hospital. Listeria was also found at the Bay Cuisine factory. The company was the sole supplier of pre-packaged meats to the hospital.