A report released by the FDA on May 7 indicates that ice cream company Blue Bell has been aware of Listeria contamination in its products since at least 2013.

“The procedure used for cleaning and sanitizing of equipment and utensils has not been shown to provide adequate cleaning and sanitizing treatment,” states the report from the inspection of Blue Bell’s plant in Broken Arrow, Okla.

Listeria was isolated from non-food contact areas within the processing room and kitchen and from non-food contact surfaces of production equipment. These included five samples in 2013, 10 samples in 2014, and two samples in January and February of 2015. In addition, environmental samples collected by the FDA in March tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes.

Further observations in the report indicate that temperature levels were not properly monitored during ice cream production, and condensation potentially contaminated the food products.

See also: Non-Contact Technology for Accurately Measuring Volume in Bins, Tanks and Silos 

Another comment in the report states that a “Mix Draw Operator was observed touching non-food contact and food contact surfaces with the same pair of gloved hands.” Furthermore, the Mix Draw Operator checked the volume in a flavor tank by “directly wiping product off the metal dipstick with his gloved hand, while the product drained back into the tank, and then he returned the dipstick back into the Flavor Tank. The Mix Draw Operator did not perform a hand wash or glove change prior to touching the product on the dipstick.”

Employees’ shoes were not changed or covered during their time in the food production area. The report states, “Specifically, you do not have cleaning and sanitizing procedures for employee shoes worn into the sanitary food production areas of the firm to ensure that any possible contamination risks are minimized. Shoes are worn out of the firm to employee’s vehicles and homes and then back into the sanitary food production areas each day without any cleaning and sanitizing requirements. In addition, employees were observed traveling from sanitary food production areas to non-sanitary areas including dry goods storage, maintenance shop, offices, break room, outside smoking areas, and milk truck delivery bays without cleaning and sanitizing prior to re-entry into the sanitary food production areas between March 23-27, 2015.”

See also: Blue Bell Contamination Dates Back Years 

Source: FDA