Dreyer's Ice Cream Plant Gets FDA Warning Letter Over Listeria

On September 29, 2026, FDA's Human Foods Program issued a warning letter (CMS # 727644) to Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, Inc. over its Bakersfield, California plant, following an inspection from January 27 to February 20, 2026. FDA determined the frozen, ready-to-eat ice cream cone products are adulterated. The letter announces no recall.

The letter says FDA found repeated Listeria monocytogenes findings and hygiene lapses in the production of frozen, ready-to-eat ice cream cone products. It does not say whether any finished product tested positive or whether any illnesses are linked to the plant.

Key takeaways

• The FDA warning letter is dated September 29, 2026, and follows an inspection running January 27 through February 20, 2026.
• FDA determined the frozen, ready-to-eat ice cream cone products are adulterated under section 402(a)(4) of the FD&C Act.
• Environmental monitoring records from 2021 through February 5, 2026 show ongoing Listeria findings. As of February 5, 2026, the letter cites 19 Listeria positives and 8 confirmed L. monocytogenes positives in 2026.
• FDA said the firm's March 13 and April 13, 2026 responses did not adequately address years of Listeria findings.

What happened

FDA's Human Foods Program issued the warning letter to Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, Inc., 7301 District Blvd, Bakersfield, CA, and the letter is dated September 29, 2026. It is published on FDA's warning letter page: FDA warning letter, Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, Inc. 727644.

FDA inspected the Bakersfield facility between January 27 and February 20, 2026. The letter describes serious violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food regulation (21 CFR Part 117). The FDA page for the letter was current as of October 13, 2026.

The letter centers on the plant's frozen, ready-to-eat (RTE) ice cream cone products. Its hazard analysis discussion notes that RTE product receives no further lethal treatment and is exposed to the environment, and the findings focus on the plant's environment and handling practices.

Did FDA find Listeria at the Dreyer's ice cream plant?

Yes. FDA found ongoing Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp. findings in environmental monitoring records from 2021 through February 5, 2026. As of February 5, 2026, the letter cites 19 Listeria positives and 8 confirmed L. monocytogenes positives in 2026, even though FDA notes the overall percentage of L. monocytogenes findings had been reduced. The letter does not state whether any finished product tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes.

What changed

The letter does not describe a new rule, ingredient restriction, or product ban. The change it documents is FDA's regulatory determination that the frozen, RTE ice cream cone products are adulterated under section 402(a)(4) of the FD&C Act. The letter states the products were prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have become contaminated with filth or rendered injurious to health.

The letter sets out next steps. The firm must respond in writing within 15 working days. It says failure to address the violations may result in legal action, including seizure and injunction, and that FDA will verify corrective actions at a follow-up inspection.

Who is affected

What products are made at the Dreyer's Bakersfield plant?

The letter does not disclose where products from this plant are distributed, and it names only the items listed below. The letter names frozen, ready-to-eat ice cream cone products as the subject of its adulteration finding and cites specific items observed during production. Full brand names for most products are redacted as (b)(4), so the names below are as the letter states them:

• Minis Chocolate Chip Vanilla Sandwich, 12 ct., BEST BY 31 OCT 2026
• A 16ct Vanilla Fudge, Vanilla Caramel, and Vanilla product containing chopped peanuts
• Mini Fruit Pops Cherry, Tangerine, Grape, 12ct

The letter also mentions a "Round Top Drumsticks" product only in the context of the firm's hazard analysis. The letter does not state that this product is part of the adulteration finding, and it does not state where that product was distributed.

Who faces the highest risk from Listeria?

FDA's Listeria and Listeriosis page notes that L. monocytogenes can survive and grow even under refrigeration and can thrive in unsanitary food production conditions. FDA's Listeria and Listeriosis page describes listeriosis as especially dangerous for newborns, adults over 65, people with weakened immune systems, and people during pregnancy, and lists these groups as at higher risk.

What it means for shoppers

The letter is a regulatory notice about a manufacturing facility. It does not give shoppers instructions, and it does not identify the retail stores or freezer cases that carried these products.

The letter does state one date on one listed item: the Minis Chocolate Chip Vanilla Sandwich, 12 ct., BEST BY 31 OCT 2026. Beyond that, the letter does not describe which packages, lots, or dates are linked to any market action.

• Check the FDA warning letter page for updates before assuming a product is covered or cleared.
• If you are in a group at higher risk from listeriosis, read FDA's Listeria guidance and talk with a health professional about your situation.

Is there a Dreyer's ice cream recall?

No recall is announced in the warning letter. The letter describes FDA's enforcement step and the firm's response obligations, and it does not name a recall of any product.

The background

The letter describes a long monitoring history. Environmental monitoring records from 2021 through February 5, 2026 show ongoing findings rather than isolated ones. The letter states the Listeria findings were ongoing throughout production and auxiliary areas of the plant.

The letter says the firm's hazard analysis for Round Top Drumsticks concluded that pathogen contamination such as Listeria and/or Salmonella was not a significant hazard, even though the RTE product is exposed to the environment and receives no further lethal treatment. The letter also says the firm's glove swabs test for Enterobacteriaceae, an indicator group that does not detect Listeria spp. A clean result on that test therefore does not by itself show that Listeria was absent from the environment.

The letter also describes observed practices. It says employees handling RTE food and food-contact surfaces were seen touching boxes, trash bin liners, or other unsanitary surfaces without washing hands or changing gloves, on January 28, February 11, and February 13, 2026. FDA also said it did not observe the sanitizer hygienic barriers the firm described as in use on January 27, February 5, February 10, and February 12, 2026.

Listeria in food-processing environments is a recurring regulatory concern. Readers comparing this letter with other enforcement covered on Aurascan can read Starfish Smoked Salmon Trio Recalled for Listeria Risk. For another recent FDA warning letter that centers on a plant's food safety plan, see FDA Warns Venezuelan Cheese Maker Over Roaches and No Safety Plan.

What is an FDA warning letter?

A warning letter is how FDA notifies a party of what it believes are significant violations. It gives the company an opportunity to respond and correct the problems. FDA describes its warning and close-out letters on its warning and close-out letters guidance page.

What to watch next

The most concrete next step is the firm's written response, due within 15 working days. FDA will then verify corrective actions at a follow-up inspection. If the violations are not addressed, the letter says FDA may pursue legal action, including seizure and injunction.

FDA said the firm's March 13 and April 13, 2026 responses showed significant effort, citing a new Pathogen Investigation Form and added hand sanitizer stations. FDA also said those responses did not adequately address years of positive Listeria findings. The letter says the responses did not state whether a facility-wide deep clean was done and did not state whether the hazard analysis was reanalyzed.

In its response, the firm said duplicate swabbing identified three presumptive positive sites, including the site of the FDA sample that tested positive for Listeria innocua. The letter does not say whether any of these sites were linked to finished product. The firm's public response to the warning letter is not disclosed.

The warning letter itself announces no recall. Readers should check the warning letter page for updates, and any later announcement from the firm or regulators would be the place to look for product-specific details.

The evidence in this letter describes the plant's controls, monitoring, and documentation as FDA reports them. It cannot establish whether any individual product caused illness, whether any shopper was exposed, or whether conditions at the plant match the letter after the follow-up inspection. Open questions include the outcome of the corrective actions and whether any finished product tested positive.

If you want to understand how a label shows ingredients and claims, start with the Nutrition Facts panel and ingredient list on the package in front of you. Aurascan is a food-label scanner app for iPhone with a free tier. It explains each ingredient one by one with cited evidence, rather than a single black-box score, and it pulls product data from Open Food Facts, USDA, and barcode databases. Scan the product you are holding and judge the ingredient-level evidence yourself.