The most recent government findings in the Listeria food poisoning outbreak associated with Blue Bell ice cream have placed Texas in an even greater spotlight than before. Already recognized as the home state of the 108-year-old Blue Bell Creameries Co., Texas has now been confirmed by federal health investigators as the location of a second cluster of illnesses in the outbreak. Based on reports from the FDA, CDC and the Texas Department of State Health Services, three Texas hospital patients became ill with listeriosis over a period of time from 2011-2014. Officials who have studied the molecular fingerprints of Listeria found in Blue Bell ice cream say it matches the strains in the Texas hospital patients. None of the agencies would provide details about the Texas case patients, but … [Read more...]
Preventing Listeriosis During Pregnancy
Pregnant women are at elevated risk for listerioisis, one of the deadliest kinds of food poisoning, and the complications can be tragic. Among pregnant women, Listeria infections can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth and in newborns, infection or death. Symptoms, which can take as long as 70 days after exposure to develop, include fever, chills, muscle aches, diarrhea and upset stomach. Most pregnant women are 10 times more likely than the general population to contract listeriosis. For pregnant women who are Hispanic, the risk is 24 times higher. Some of that increased risk is attributed to food choices like Mexican-style soft cheeses. For all women, avoiding certain foods during pregnancy is the best way to reduce the risk of listeriosis. According to the Centers … [Read more...]
Law Firm Retained in Blue Bell Listeria Outbreak
A law firm has been retained in the Blue Bell Listeria outbreak which has sickened at least eight people in two states, killing three of them. "Because Listeria is one of the deadliest foodborne bacteria, producers should be extremely careful and vigilant to make sure it is kept out of America’s food supply," said Listeria lawyer Fred Pritzker, who is representing a client in this outbreak. About 20 percent of Listeria cases are fatal, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Almost 60 percent of Listeria infections occur in adults 65 and older, about 14 percent of cases occur in pregnant women among whom these infections can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, and illness and death of newborns. Others at elevated risk of infection are young … [Read more...]
Texas Health Issues Listeria Advisory to Healthcare Providers
The Texas State Department of Health Services has issued a Listeria advisory to healthcare providers. Patients with symptoms, who are in high-risk groups and may have been exposed to Listeria through a contaminated product should be tested, the advisory states. Specifically, "diagnostic testing should include cultures of blood and other specimens, such ascerebrospinal fluid, as indicated by the clinical presentation." Symptoms of a Listeria infection can take 70 days to develop. They include high fever, severe headache, stiff neck, other muscle stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Listeria infections can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women. Those at high risk for an invasive Listeria infection include pregnant women, adults 65 and older, those with … [Read more...]
Oklahoma Inspectors Liked Blue Bell Plant Just Before Finding Listeria
Dairy Services inspectors for the state of Oklahoma liked what they saw at the Blue Bell Ice Cream plant in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, just weeks before the company shut down production there and expanded recalls related to an ice cream Listeria outbreak. "Great job," "Keep it up!" and "No violations observed!" were among the remarks written into the report from a March 18 food safety review at the plant, according to an inspection document obtained by The Associated Press under the Freedom of Information Act. A few days earlier, federal health officials had linked Blue Bell ice cream made in Texas to an outbreak of listeriosis that killed three people in Wichita, Kansas. Then, on March 22, Kansas officials informed Blue Bell that they found Listeria monocytogenes in a Blue Bell 3-ounce … [Read more...]
Listeria Lawyer: Blue Bell Shows Need for Better Ice Cream Testing
The Blue Bell Listeria outbreak has highlighted the need for improved testing at facilities that make frozen dairy products, according to Fred Pritzker, a food safety attorney with Pritzker Hageman in Minneapolis. Over the last four years, Listeria in ice cream products made at Blue Bell facilities in two states has sickened at least eight people, killing three of them. How did Blue Bell's Listeria problem go on for years without detection? Part of the problem is that Blue Bell's plants weren't regularly tested by state and federal health authorities for Listeria, a bacteria known to thrive in cold temperatures. Blue Bell manufactures ice cream in three locations: Brenham, Texas; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma and Sylacauga, Alabama. All three locations were inspected regularly, some … [Read more...]
Dallas County Health Agency Issues Listeriosis Advisory in Texas
Three cases of listeriosis in Texas have been confirmed to be part of a multistate outbreak of Listeria illnesses related to Blue Bell ice cream products. That linkage has prompted a health advisory to the Dallas County medical community. The Texas Listeria advisory was issued by the Dallas County Health and Human Services agency to heighten awareness of the outbreak. The identical strain of Listeria monocytogenes that recently killed three hospital patients in Wichita, Kansas, also sickened three people in Texas between 2011 and 2014, the FDA has said. “While we have not received any reports of cases in Dallas County related to Blue Bell ice cream products, DCHHS is monitoring the situation to ensure we are abreast of any information related to this outbreak,” said Zachary Thompson, … [Read more...]
Blue Bell Listeria Outbreak Timeline
The Blue Bell Listeria outbreak has sickened at least eight people in two states since 2011. All of them were hospital patients who were served contaminated ice cream during their stays. Three people have died. The rarity of the outbreak strains is now playing a key role in helping health officials identify clusters of illness that may be associated with the ice cream. Those at highest risk for Listeria infection are children, seniors, the immune-compromised and pregnant women. Among pregnant women, listeriosis can cause miscarriage and stillbirth. In the month since the Blue Bell outbreak was announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on March 13: the outbreak has expanded from one to two states; Listeria, initially associated with one troubled manufacturing line … [Read more...]
Blue Bell Listeria Monocytogenes Outbreak Grows to Eight Sick
The Listeria monocytogenes outbreak linked to Blue Bell Creameries ice cream has grown to include eight sick in two states, according to the CDC. The outbreak consists of two clusters involving people sickened with this pathogenic bacteria: one in Kansas, with five sick, and one in Texas, with three sick. This complicated outbreak has occurred over an extended period of time. Three people have died in this outbreak. Recent testing of product samples from the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma Blue Bell facility found Listeria monocytogenes bacteria in a product sold to retail customers that were not included in the previous two recalls, including a pint of banana pudding ice cream. The government recommends that consumers not eat ANY Blue Bell products made at the Oklahoma facility, and don't … [Read more...]
Blue Bell Recalls Ice Cream, Sherbet Pints and Half Gallons for Listeria
Blue Bell is now recalling pints and half gallons of ice cream and sherbet made at its plant in Broken Arrow, Okla. The recall expansion was triggered when tests performed on Banana Pudding Ice Cream pints by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were positive for Listeria monocytogenes. The company is recalling all products produced on the same line between February 12, 2015 – March 27, 2015. The recalled products have a code date ending in either S or T on the bottom of the carton. The recalled products are as follows: Ice cream pints with the UPC # 0 71899-05015 in the following flavors and lot codes: Banana Pudding 021217S, Butter Crunch 021917S, Mint Chocolate Chip 022017S, Cookie ‘ Cream 030317S, 030617S, Homemade Vanilla 032317S, Dutch Chocolate 032317S and … [Read more...]
