Blue Bell ice cream production line (Photo : Reuters)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns the Blue Bell ice cream brand Scoops tainted with the deadly Listeria virus that took three lives in Kansas over the weekend could lead to more victims.
The FDA fears the outbreak associated with Scoops that lasted from January 2014 to January 2015 could possibly claim more victims if contaminated products in home freezers are eaten by unwary consumers.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned against buying the following Blue Bell ice cream products listed below. It said consumers shouldn't eat any of the products listed.
If these ice cream products are in your freezer, they should be thrown away, even if some of them have been eaten without anyone becoming ill. The products are:
Product Name Product Code
Chocolate Chip Country Cookie SKU # 196
Great Divide Bar SKU #108
Sour Pop Green Apple Bar SKU #221
Cotton Candy Bar SKU #216
Scoops SKU #117
Vanilla Stick Slices SKU #964
Almond Bars SKU #156
6 pack Cotton Candy Bars SKU #245
6 pack Sour Pop Green Apple Bars SKU #249
12 pack No Sugar Added Mooo Bars* SKU #343
The FDA said five Kansans were infected by the deadly pathogen that has a mortality rate of about 20 percent while hospitalized for unrelated conditions at Via Christi Hospital St. Francis in Wichita. Three of these patients died, said The Food Poisoning Bulletin.
This website also reported that Blue Bell CEO Paul Cruse saying the machine utilized to make Scoops and other single-serve items hadn't been in operation for about a month and a half and that this production line was "troubled".
He said health investigators believe the Listeria problem is associated only with the one line, that makes Scoops and nine other products that the company has withdrawn from the marketplace.
CDC explained at least four of the five patients ate milkshakes prepared with Scoops ice cream before they developed listeriosis.
CDC said listeriosis is a rare but serious illness caused by eating food contaminated with the bacteria called Listeria monocytogenes. Anyone that experiences fever and muscle aches, sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms, or develops fever and chills after eating the ice cream should seek medical care and tell their health care provider about any history of eating the ice cream. Symptoms can appear from a few days up to a few weeks after consumption of the contaminated food.
The Texas Department of State Health Services collected ice cream samples from the Blue Bell Creameries plant in Brenham, Texas after an alert from South Carolina. The tests found Listeria monocytogenes from the same two products tested by South Carolina. The FDA also reported the Texas sampling found Listeria monocytogenes in Scoops,
