COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams says its scoop shops will reopen in time for the unofficial start of summer.
On its website, the company posted a statement saying it has restarted production after a massive recall triggered by the discovery of listeria in some pints.
Stores in Ohio and five other states will reopen in time for the Memorial Day weekend, with some exceptions. The store location at the North Market will not open May 22 because of “limited market hours” so the company says normal business hours will resume the following day. Opening dates for seasonal shops at Columbus Commons and in German Village will be determined.
The Nashville, Chicago, Atlanta, Charleston, and Los Angeles stores will open their doors at 7:00 p.m. on May 22 with normal business hours resuming the following day.
The company traced the source of the listeria to a machine in its Columbus kitchen. It decided to destroy $2.5 million worth of ice cream, then cleaned and reworked production to prevent future contamination.
“There are three qualities we celebrate in our employees above all else: talent, hustle, and guts,” founder Jeni Britton Bauer said in the statement. “You invest in culture specifically for times like these. Our team came together in a crisis. We will come out of this stronger as a company than we went into it.”
The Thursday statement from Jeni’s says it plans to reopen its scoop shops by Memorial Day weekend, though some flavors will be missing as the company rebuilds its supply.
The company lost its supply of strawberries from Hirsch Fruit Farm, harvested last year and frozen, so its Roasted Strawberry Buttermilk ice cream won’t be available until mid-summer.
Salty Caramel and other signature flavors, including Root Beer, and a new, limited-edition flavor, Sun-Popped Corn, will be available and additional flavors will be added in the coming weeks as the kitchen returns to full production and the summer progresses.
Jeni’s says several Ohio ice cream producers offered to make some of Jeni’s ice creams to help out, and Smith’s dairy in Orrville will be doing just that.