BLUE BELL SUSPENDS OPERATIONS IN OKLAHOMA PLANT

  

Blue Bell Ice Cream has announced the suspension of operations at an Oklahoma production facility that had previously connected to a foodborne illness that may have contributed to the deaths of three people.

In a statement posted late Friday on Blue Bell’s corporate website, company officials say they’re taking this voluntary action "…out of an abundance of caution."

The statement says Blue Bell will, “…thoroughly inspect the facility for any possible problems that may have led to the contamination of some ice cream products in the past few weeks.”

The statement goes on to say, “The Broken Arrow operations will be suspended so that a team of expert consultants can conduct a careful and complete examination to determine the exact cause of the contamination.”

A number of products were recalled last month that were traced back to the plant in Brenham.

Blue Bell and health officials then tracked a contaminated cup of ice cream was to the Oklahoma plant.

The recall began after five patients in a Wichita, Kansas hospital, became ill with listeria--at least four of them drank milkshakes containing Blue Bell ice cream.  Three of the patients died.

Blue Bell’s other plants continue to operate and supply products to retail stores and institutional customers.