Article

Blue Bell kicks off product restocking following recall

Blue Bell Ice Cream is kicking off a five-phase product deployment today and getting its product back on shelves in Texas and Alabama.

August 31, 2015

Blue Bell Ice Cream is kicking off a five-phase product deployment today, putting its ice cream back on shelves in Texas and Alabama following a recall this past spring that resulted in 8 million gallons of ice cream taken from retailers and other sales outlets in the U.S. and abroad.

In a note on its website, the company thanked consumers and fans for their patience and loyalty and also provided a map that displayed future product availability across the country.

“We are excited to announce that we have begun filling stores with our products,” said Ricky Dickson, VP of sales and marketing for Blue Bell, in a company release. “It could take more than a week to get everyone stocked with ice cream and some locations could sell out quickly. But, we will be stocking and restocking as quickly as we can.”

Earlier this year, the company shuttered several production facilities in Brenham, Texas, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, and Sylacauga, Alabama, due to potential listeria contamination issues. The company issued a national recall after products were linked to 10 listeria illnesses in four states, and three deaths in Kansas, according to a USA Today report.

A company release revealed that the product return roll-out strategy would begin with Austin, Brenham and Houston in Texas and Birmingham and Montgomery in Alabama.

"We greatly appreciate everyone’s patience and support over the past several months," Dickson said. "This will be a slow process and it will take some time to get back to full speed."

The first four flavors available will be Dutch Chocolate, Cookies ’n Cream, Homemade Vanilla and The Great Divide.

The next phases include:

• Phase Two: North central Texas and southern Oklahoma
• Phase Three: Southwest Texas and central Oklahoma
• Phase Four: The majority of Texas and southern Louisiana.
• Phase Five: Complete the states of Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas and begin 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.