This document summarizes a Listeria outbreak linked to Blue Bell Ice Cream products in 2015. It provides details on the number of illnesses, deaths, and hospitalizations caused by the outbreak. FDA investigations found sanitation issues at Blue Bell's Texas and Oklahoma production facilities, including unhygienic processing, lax employee hygiene policies, improper food handling and storage, and poor infrastructure maintenance. As a result of the outbreak, Blue Bell recalled all of its products in 2015 and 2016, and was fined $850,000 by state health departments.

1. BLUE BELL ICE CREAM
Listeria Outbreak
H.M.R.P. Perera
14/AG/023
Department of Livestock Production
Faculty of Agricultural Sciences
Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka

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• Product Name – Blue Bell Creameries (Blue Bell Ice Cream)
• Etiology - Listeria monocytogenes (Causing Listeriosis). According to
the PulseNet there were 7 strains.
• Case Count – 10
• States - 04
• Deaths - 03
• Hospitalizations - 10

3. States Affected
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4. Month illness Onset
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5. The Story
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6. • In 2015 FDA investigations were done in 3 Factories.
• According to them Texas and Oklahoma Facilities done 4 violations.
1. Unhygienic Process safety
2. Lax employee hygiene
3. Improper food conditions
4. Poor infrastructure maintenance
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7. Texas Factory Oklahoma Factory
Unhygienic Process
Safety
• Unsanitary piping systems
• Condensate dripping onto different
products prior to packaging
• Unsanitary piping systems
• Condensate dripping onto different
products prior to packaging
Lax employee
hygiene
• Production unit neglected enforce uniform
or hairnet policies.
• 6 Employees failed to cover the beards.
• Employees ware soiled shoes or clothes
into production areas.
• No entrance hygiene rules.
Mix draw operator/ Machine operator/
Freight Puller worked together to process
large tanks of ingredients. Cloths/gloves not
removed. Or not washed hands. Direct
contact with foods.
Improper food
conditions
• Improper food
processing/Storage/Distribution
• Operated equipment different T0 than
those specified in equipment instructions.
• Raw tanks contain unpasteurized
ingredients.
• Water T0 used to wash equipment and
clean food contact surfaces of equipment
were not monitored or recorded as
required.7

8. Texas Factory Oklahoma Factory
Poor Infrastructure
maintenance
• unsanitary equipment and that
neither plant maintained safe infrastructure.
• Many blenders were dirty. Dirty lids, blades
and undersides despite the constant use of
raw ingredients.
• Ceiling were damaged and crumbled.
• unsanitary equipment and that
neither plant maintained safe infrastructure.
• Chipped paint/rotting wood/damaged
infrastructure.
• High humidity and lac of air accumulation
in storage units.
• Freezer unit for single service ice cream
products had mold growing gaskets.
• Wooden pallets appeared soiled, broken
and unsanitary.
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10. Actions taken by the Company.
• 13 March 2015
Removing the “scoops” Ice cream product & other products made on the same
production line from the market.
Shut down that production line at its Brenham, Texas facility.
• 3 April 2015
Blue bell creameries reported they had voluntarily suspended operations at
their facility in Oklahoma.
• 20 April 2015
Voluntarily recalled all products currently on the market made at all of its
facilities.
• 16 September 2016
Recall again all the products voluntarily.
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11. Penalties given to the Company.
• State health department fined $ 850,000.
• $ 175,000 paid with in 30 days.
• The remaining $675,000 will be paid only if the company violates the terms
of the agreement during an 18 month period.
• Company should have do practice Test and Hold method.
• Retain an independent sanitation and or microbiology expert qualified.
• Notify the state within 24 hours if finds Listeria in any finished product.
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12. References
• https://www.dallasnews.com/business/retail/2016/09/21/blue-bell-recalls-ice-cream-
listeria-concerns
• https://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/news/another-listeria-recall-for-blue-bell-ice-
cream/
• https://www.google.lk/amp/amp.timeinc.net/fortune/2015/09/25/blue-bell-listeria-recall
• https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2015/05/fda-inspectors-report-long-list-of-problems-at-
three-blue-bell-plants/
• https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/outbreaks/ice-cream-03-15/index.html
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