Velvet Ice Cream announced a recall of ice cream and sherbet products sold under several brands in four states this week. The products could be contaminated with listeria, a bacteria that can cause foodborne illness, according to a Food and Drug Administration announcement.
The Velvet Ice Cream recall includes all of the manufacturer’s ice cream and sherbet products made on or since March 24, 2021, which were distributed to grocery stores, convenience stores, and drug stores in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia. The recall affects more than 90 different product lots sold under seven different brands: Buehler’s, Discount Drug Mart, North Star, Whale of a Pail, Ruggle’s, Super Dip, and Velvet.
The wide variety of recalled products includes containers of many different flavors of ice cream and sherbet, ranging in size from one pint to three gallons, as well as some ice cream bars and sherbet pops. (The FDA has a full list of recalled products, including package photos and all 96 product codes, which are located on the side or bottom of the container.)
The potential for listeria contamination was discovered through routine testing done by the company, according to the announcement. At this point, there are no cases of illness connected with the recalled ice cream, which is being pulled from shelves as a precaution. “We’re conducting this voluntary recall in cooperation with the FDA out of consideration for the well-being and safety of our customers and consumers,” Luconda Dager, the CEO of Velvet Ice Cream, said in a statement.
Listeria is a type of bacteria (Listeria monocytogenes) that can cause a potentially serious infection called listeriosis, which affects an estimated 1,600 people in the U.S. each year and kills about 260, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Most cases cause symptoms such as fever and diarrhea and don’t require specific treatment or hospitalization. But people who are pregnant (and their unborn babies), newborns, those aged 65 or older, or anyone living with a weakened immune system are more vulnerable to the illness. These groups may experience more severe symptoms or an invasive listeria infection, which occurs when the infection spreads beyond the gut and causes symptoms such as a stiff neck, confusion, and loss of balance, the CDC explains.
In pregnant people, though invasive listeriosis may cause only flu-like symptoms (such as fatigue and muscle aches), it can nonetheless result in serious pregnancy complications, the CDC says. While most healthy people with mild listeriosis don’t need antibiotic treatment, people with serious or invasive infections often do, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Consumers who have any of the recalled products should throw them away or return them to the store where they were bought for a refund. Customers may also contact Velvet Ice Cream via phone or online to ask questions.