Dive Brief:
- Blue Bell Creameries has signed voluntary agreements with the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry vowing to vigorously test for and report listeria in products made at their Brenham, TX, and Broken Arrow, OK, plants.
- Blue Bell will give state health officials at least two weeks' notice before the company begins producing ice cream for sale to consumers so that those officials can assess the company's progress and test results.
- The company will also submit to trial runs of its products undergoing listeria testing by the state and the company itself.
Dive Insight:
According to the CDC and FoodNet, in 2014, salmonella was the most frequent culprit in foodborne illness, amounting to about 38% of the total. Campylobacter was next with 33%. Also, it looks like funding toward food safety is bulking up.