The Blue Bell plant initially responsible for producing tainted ice cream has had problems for years, regulators charged Thursday.
The Food and Drug Administration released 2015 inspection reports that paint an unflattering picture of Blue Bell Creameries’ production facilities. Last month the company recalled all of its products due to fears it was contaminated with a deadly bacteria called Listeria.
The bacteria can sicken healthy people and even kill weak, young and older people.
An April inspection of the company’s Broken Arrow, Okla., plant was the most extensive, finding 12 problems with how the plant produced ice cream.
The agency found that the plant was plagued by Listeria since 2013. The inspection report found five places in 2013 contaminated with Listeria, 10 in 2014, one in January and another in February of this year.
Places that were contaminated included catwalks, the floor in front a freezer, drains and a water hose.
Blue Bell admitted that its cleaning process might have let the bacteria faster.
“We thought our cleaning process took care of any problems, but in hindsight, it was not adequate, which is why we are currently conducting such a comprehensive re-evaluation of all our operations,” the Texas creamery told the Washington Examiner.
Blue Bell also stored unpasteurized milk products such as chocolate above the recommended temperature of 45 degrees Fahrenheit, which could have enabled microbial contamination, the FDA said.
For instance, in 2014 chocolate was stored at 47 degrees and skim milk stored at between 48 and 46 degrees.
Another Blue Bell facility in Brenham, Texas, found similar cleaning problems with an ingredient hopper that wasn’t kept clean.
