For the first time in its 108-year history, Blue Bell Creameries of Brenham, Texas, has stopped making ice cream. It is voluntarily recalling all of its products in all of its facilities because of potential contamination with Listeria.

That might not seem like a big deal if you’re not from Texas. But many Texans eat no other ice cream. It’s not so much food snobbery as it is habit–and perhaps a dash of Texas pride. It’s the only ice cream many have ever eaten. So it’s not like Texans are down one brand of ice cream in the supermarket freezer case. It’s like they’re plumb out of ice cream.

The family-run business has achieved cult-like status outside of Texas, too, mostly from homesick Texans and refugees from