Blue Bell Ice Cream shuts down plant following illness

Blue Bell Ice Cream voluntarily suspended operations at a company plant in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, on Friday, following the deaths of three people that officials linked back to a foodborne illness in some of the plant's products, NBC News reports.

Health officials found that of five patients who became sick with listeriosis between December 2013 and January 2015 at a hospital in Wichita, Kansas, at least four had drank milkshakes made with Blue Bell ice cream. A subsequent test of an ice cream product meant for "institutional accounts" — such as hospitals — found it was contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes.

Blue Bell promises it is conducting a "careful and complete" examination of its products; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that consumers throw away any Blue Bell products that have been made at the company's Broken Arrow plant.

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