Agency classClass IOur severity:Critical FDA (Food)·F-2471-2015·Announced 2015-07-01

Blue Bell Light Ice Cream Recalled Due to Listeria Infections

Blue Bell Creameries is recalling Light Ice Cream because five patients in Kansas were infected with Listeria monocytogenes.

The agency’s classification

FDA (Food): Class I

Class I is a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.

This is the agency’s own classification, taken from its notice. The severity score below is our assessment, not the agency’s. How recall classes work

What this means for you

Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 5/5 (Critical).

Highest-severity recall. The hazard can cause serious injury or death. Stop using the product now and follow the agency's instructions.

Our severity reasoning: The recall is classified as FDA Class I and involves reported infections with Listeria monocytogenes in five patients, meeting the criteria for a Critical severity score.

Plain-English summary

Blue Bell Creameries, L.P. is recalling Blue Bell Light Ice Cream, Homemade Vanilla Flavored, half-gallon (1.89L) containers. The recall involves 1,866,288 units of the product, which is described as having 25% fewer calories and 55% less fat than regular ice cream.

The recall was initiated after five patients treated in a single hospital in Kansas were infected with one of four rare strains of Listeria monocytogenes. The agency has classified this as a Class I recall.

The product was distributed in numerous U.S. states, including Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Indiana, Illinois, Montana, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Arizona, and Nevada. It was also distributed in Bermuda, Belize, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Dominican Republic, Panama, Turks and Caicos, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, Puerto Rico, Chile, Peru, China, Mexico, Philippines, Tortola, St. Thomas, St. Croix, Anguilla, St. Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, and Dominica. All lots within the expiry date are affected. Consumers should check their freezers for this product and dispose of it or return it to the place of purchase.

The recalled product

Product: Blue Bell Light Ice Cream Homemade Vanilla Flavored Natural and Artificial Flavor Added 25% fewer calories and 55% less fat than regular ice cream HALF GALLON (1.89L)
Manufacturer: Blue Bell Creameries, L.P.
Category: Food — Ice Cream
Hazard: listeria
Affected units: 1,866,288

Is your product affected?

Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.

Lot numbers (1)

All lots within expiry

Distribution

Distributed in 24 states:

Part of a larger recall action

This product is one of 286 recalled by Blue Bell Creameries, L.P. under a single FDA (Food) recall action. The agency files each product separately, so the size of the action is not visible from this page alone.

See all 286 products in this recall →

Same manufacturer · Blue Bell Creameries, L.P.

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