Multiple Ice Cream Brands Are Being Recalled Nationwide For A Listeria Risk

People looking for icy sweet treats to help beat the summer heat may want to think again. A nationwide recall is hitting a plethora of big name brands over fears of contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. In a company announcement published through the FDA, Totally Cool, Inc. (which manufactures ice cream and related products sold under numerous brand names) is pulling all of its lines from store shelves in an abundance of caution after the organism was detected. To date, there have been no illnesses associated with ice cream produced by Totally Cool, Inc.

The recall covers brands such as Hershey's, Friendly's, Jeni's (though nothing from its seasonal summer lineup), ChipWich, LaSale, Dolcezza Gelato, Cumberland Farms, AMAFruits, Taharka, Marco, The Frozen Farmer, Yelloh!, and Abilyn's Frozen Bakery. Products include a range of ice cream cakes, ice cream sandwiches, frozen pies, sorbet, and pints of ice cream. Customers who think they may have purchased an affected product in-store or online should check the FDA's recall list, where they can find out more about the product sale dates and codes.

Listeria monocytogenes infection can give rise to a range of symptoms centered around the gut, such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea, and fever. Further, it can have more extreme or even fatal implications for at-risk populations, including the elderly, children, pregnant women, and those who are immunocompromised. A 2023 outbreak traced to Washington state chain Frugal's was responsible for multiple deaths and hospitalizations. 

Several grocery store chains have taken steps to warn consumers about the risk of the products. Those include Whole Foods, Wegman's, Safeway, and Market Basket among others. The affected products have been tracked to hundreds of stores in at least 25 states, with many also available online.

This isn't the first time an ice cream production facility has had to issue a recall that impacted several brands at once. In 2022, Royal Ice Cream Company was found by the FDA to have potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Consequently, brands such as Batch, Sweet Scoops Yogurt, Ronnybrook, and Newport Creamery all saw various ice creams and other items pulled. And just recently, a Wisconsin creamery that makes cream cheese and spreads for numerous brands had to issue a recall due to Salmonella contamination.