Blue Bell Ice Cream should be back on the shelves in Florida beginning the week of Jan. 25.
The Brenham, Texas-based company posted on its bluebell.com website last week it was starting its phase five market re-entry Jan. 18 into Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and parts of Georgia and South Carolina.
It starts distribution the following week into Florida and other parts of Georgia and South Carolina.
Blue Bell is producing seven flavors along with 12-pack cups. After phase five, the company intends to build inventory for the spring and add more products and flavors, said Ricky Dickson, vice president of sales and marketing, in a news release.
“All of us at Blue Bell are very thankful for the patience and support our customers have shown during this time,” Dickson said.
Blue Bell recalled all of its products in April after discovering contamination by the listeria bacteria. Health officials linked its ice cream to three deaths at a Kansas hospital and to illnesses in other areas.
The family-owned company cleaned and sanitized its four production plants and 50 distribution centers, including the Westside Jacksonville distribution center.
Last week, CNN reported Blue Bell Creameries is under criminal investigation for its handling of the ice cream contamination linked to 10 reported cases of listeriosis and the three deaths of those believed to be sickened by Blue Bell frozen treats.
Blue Bell was the third-largest ice-cream producer in the country in 2014 with sales in 23 states. After the recall, it laid off more than a third of its workforce.
Blue Bell, a 109-year-old company, began rolling out its products again Aug. 31, starting in Oklahoma and Texas.
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