Blue Bell Creameries Has A Christmas Present For Coloradans

By Doug Hoffacker, CBSDenver.com

DENVER (CBS4) - Ice cream lovers in Colorado are getting a Christmas present. That is, if you're a fan of Texas-based Blue Bell Ice Cream.

The creamery announced it's resuming sales in the state of Colorado next March.

Sales in Colorado were stopped after a massive recall in March 2015. Some of its ice cream products were linked to a deadly string of listeria cases. Eight million gallons of ice cream products were recalled nationwide.

Production halted altogether, and Blue Bell reviewed its health and safety measures and retooled its manufacturing process. When sales resumed in November 2015, the delivery region was limited to Texas and a few nearby states.

Blue Bell spokesperson Jenny Van Dorf says the company's excited to be returning to Colorado.

"We thank our loyal customers for their patience during this time … during the next few months we will be building our staff and inventory as we anticipate our market entry on March 27."

Blue Bell will hire about 30 employees and open a distribution center in Centennial. Products will be available all along the Front Range.

Before the recall and production shutdown, Blue Bell had 6.4 percent of the U.S. ice cream market in 2014 with $881.8 million in sales, ranking it third in the country, according to market-research firm Euromonitor.