May 7, 2015 — Listeria contamination was discovered at Blue Bell Creameries in March 2013, but the company did not issue a recall and continued to sell contaminated ice cream for nearly two more years, according to the Associated Press.
Since 2010, at least 10 people were infected with Listeria, including three people who died after eating ice cream in milkshakes at a hospital in Kansas.
The FDA also released inspection reports from facilities in Texas, Oklahoma, and Alabama. The agency found dirty equipment and infrastructure that made cleaning difficult at all of the facilities.
The most severe Listeria violations were found at a facility in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma:
“The most extensive violations were found in Oklahoma, where the FDA released 16 separate positive tests for Listeria on equipment and in ice cream from March 2013 through January 2015.”
Violations at the Oklahoma facility included dirty equipment, employees not washing their hands properly, problems with food storage, and improper temperature-control for food.
Violations were also observed at facilities in Texas and Alabama, including employees wearing soiled clothing while working with food. Investigators also observed condensation dripping directly onto food and surfaces that came in contact with food.
Blue Bell recalled products from Oklahoma in March, and expanded the recall to include all of their products from all facilities in April 2015. The company does not expect Blue Bell to return to store shelves by Memorial Day.
Do I have a Blue Bell Ice Cream Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Blue Bell ice cream induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know has been diagnosed with Listeria, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Food Poisoning Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
Attention Lawyers: We consider a referral from another law firm to be one of the greatest compliments. If your firm is interested in referring us a case or for us to send you a list of previous award judgments and/or average referral fees, please visit the Lawyer Referral section of our website.
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading plaintiffs' law firms and handles cases in all 50 states. We are very proud of our legal achievements, but equally self-respecting of our firm's reputation for providing personal attention to each and every client we represent.
