BRENHAM, Texas -- Following a contamination recall that halted production, ice cream maker Blue Bell Ice Cream began Phase Two of its plan to return to store shelves, making deliveries on November 2 to convenience stores and other retailers located in the Dallas, Fort Worth and Waco, Texas, and Tulsa and Oklahoma City, Okla., areas.
On April 20, 2015, Blue Bell Creameries, Brenham, Texas, voluntarily recalled all of its products on the market because they had the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. This recall included ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet and frozen snacks made at all Blue Bell facilities.
Blue Bell recalled products distributed to retail outlets, including foodservice accounts, convenience stores and supermarkets in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Wyoming and international locations.
Phase One included Brenham, Houston and Austin, Texas, areas, as well as parts of Alabama, (Birmingham and Montgomery) on August 31.
Phase Three includes southwestern Texas and central Oklahoma; Phase Four, the majority of Texas and southern Louisiana; and Phase Five, completing the states of Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas and beginning distribution in Arkansas, Florida, northern Louisiana and Mississippi. This phase will also include only parts of the following states: Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Blue Bell will move on to each phase based on product availability and when it can properly service the customers in an area. With the exception of phase one, no other dates have been determined for when each expansion will take place.
“In preparation for Phase Two, we have spent the past several weeks building our inventory,” said Ricky Dickson, vice president of sales and marketing for Blue Bell. “But, it will take time to reach every account in these areas. We are working as quickly as we can to get product in stores and will be refilling shelves as needed.”
Blue Bell is entering each phase similarly to its original expansion over the past 108 years. “The only exception to our rollout is we are now servicing parts of Alabama and Oklahoma where all products are being produced,” Dickson said. “We hope to announce a date for Phase Three in the next few weeks.”
For now Blue Bell is producing five flavors of ice cream in the half gallon and pint sizes: Buttered Pecan, Cookies ’n Cream, Dutch Chocolate, Homemade Vanilla and The Great Divide. More flavors will be added in the future. 12-pak Homemade Vanilla Cups and 12-pak Homemade Vanilla and Dutch Chocolate Cups are also available in stores.
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