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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Ice cream fans, rejoice!

Blue Bell Ice Cream is coming back to Kansas City and its surrounding areas on March 18, 2019.

Those cities include:
-Kansas City (metro area)
-Topeka
-Lawrence
-Leavenworth
-Ottawa
-St. Joseph
-Sedalia

No specific store locations have been released, but Blue Bell reassured fans that their products will be available at most major supermarkets and drug stores.

Blue Bell announced that they will be hiring staff for their distribution facility in Kansas City and bringing inventory to the local cities over the next few months.

“It has always been our goal to return to Kansas City, and we believe that we are in a great position to expand our sales territory next year,” said Jimmy Lawhorn, vice president of sales and marketing for Blue Bell. “Currently, you can purchase Blue Bell in the southeastern corner of Kansas and southwest Missouri. In 2019, we will be able to include larger portions of both states. We can’t thank our customers enough for their patience.”

By May 2015 three people in Kansas died from listeria-tainted Blue Bell products. A total of 10 patients infected with listeria were reported in four states: Arizona (1), Kansas (5), Oklahoma (1), and Texas (3). All ten patients were hospitalized.

In 2016, Blue Bell had to recall ice cream distributed in Kansas and Missouri after another potential listeria bacteria contamination.