# Blue Bell Creameries Pension Plan

Blue Bell Creameries Pension Plan is a Pension Fund based in Brenham, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Pension Fund
- **Headquarters:** Brenham, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Brenham, TX, United States
- **Founded:** 1907
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** bluebell.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/blue-bell-creameries

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The Blue Bell Creameries Pension Plan exists as the retirement vehicle for the Brenham, Texas-based ice cream manufacturer founded in 1907. The plan sponsor remains controlled by the Kruse family, which has owned and managed the company across four generations. As a noncontributory defined benefit plan, employees accrue retirement benefits without payroll contributions — the sponsoring company bears the funding obligation entirely. Investment strategy and portfolio composition are not publicly disclosed. Given the plan's defined benefit structure and single-sponsor configuration, allocations are expected to reflect the conservative posture typical of closely held manufacturing pension funds. No named portfolio holdings, external managers, or co-investment partners have been identified through public filings or plan documents. The plan is administered from Blue Bell's headquarters in Brenham, with Phil McCormick and Sam Sommer serving as plan administrators. The sponsoring company employs roughly 2,700 workers across production facilities in Texas, Oklahoma, and Alabama. The plan's structural distinction lies in its integration with a private, family-owned operating company rather than a publicly traded sponsor. Unlike large corporate pension plans subject to quarterly earnings pressure, Blue Bell's pension investment strategy operates within a long-horizon private company framework where the Kruse family's multigenerational ownership aligns sponsor interests directly with retiree obligations.

## People

- Phil McCormick — Chief Financial Officer and Plan Administrator
- Sam Sommer — Plan Administrator

## Questions

### Is the pension plan subject to ERISA and public filing requirements?

As a private-sector defined benefit plan covering employees of a US-based manufacturer, the Blue Bell Creameries Pension Plan is subject to ERISA. The plan files Form 5500 annually with the Department of Labor, though the sponsoring company's private ownership means detailed investment holdings and manager relationships are not broadly disclosed.

### How does Blue Bell's 2015 listeria crisis affect the pension plan?

The 2015 recall and subsequent production shutdown created significant financial pressure on the sponsoring company, including layoffs of roughly one-third of the workforce. While the pension plan's funded status during that period is not publicly detailed, defined benefit obligations are legally protected and the company resumed operations with restructured financing. The episode underscores the plan's dependence on the sponsor's single-product manufacturing business.

### Where does the underlying funding come from?

Pension contributions come directly from Blue Bell Creameries, the single sponsoring employer. The company generates revenue from ice cream sales across 23 states, primarily in the Southern and Southeastern US. The plan does not pool assets with other employers or participate in multi-employer pension arrangements.

## Related profiles

- [Blossomhill Investment](https://altss.com/profile/blossomhill-investment)
- [Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association National Retirement Trust](https://altss.com/profile/blue-cross-and-blue-shield-association-national-retirement-trust)

---

Source record modified: 2026-08-11T02:43:31.692Z

Last verified: not supplied by this public snapshot.

## Sources and provenance

- Organization website as recorded: https://bluebell.com/
Source links do not imply that every field was verified on the page modification date. See [Altss methodology](https://altss.com/methodology).

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/blue-bell-creameries-inc-pension-plan

Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology