Thread: E.coli outbreak in NY, NJ, & PA linked to Taco Bell

Taco Bell removes green onions
By ANGELA DELLI SANTI, Associated Press Writer

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J. - Taco Bell ordered scallions removed from its 5,800 U.S. restaurants Wednesday after tests suggested they may be responsible for the E. coli outbreak that has sickened at least three dozen people in three states.

The fast-food chain said preliminary testing by an independent lab found three samples of green onions appeared to have a dangerous strain of the bacteria. "In an abundance of caution, we've decided to pull all green onions from our restaurants until we know conclusively whether they are the cause of the E. coli outbreak," said Greg Creed, president of Irvine, Calif.-based Taco Bell.

The company would not immediately identify the supplier of the scallions, so it was unclear whether contaminated green onions reached other restaurants or supermarkets.

Tainted green onions from Mexico were blamed for a 2003 outbreak of hepatitis A in western Pennsylvania that was also traced to a Mexican restaurant. Four people died and more than 600 people were sickened after eating the green onions at a Chi-Chi's.

California is the nation's largest supplier of green onions. But by December, as winter sets in, the vegetable is often imported from Mexico.

The Taco Bell chain, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands Inc., reopened restaurants linked to the outbreak on New York's Long Island after the outlets were sanitized. And two of three New Jersey Taco Bells implicated have also reopened, with authorities awaiting test results on customers from the third place.

But the fast-food chain closed nine outlets in suburban Philadelphia after health officials reported four people falling ill from E. coli.

McLane Co., which distributes food to the region's Taco Bells, said federal investigators planned to test green onions, regular onions, cilantro, tomatoes and lettuce from its southern New Jersey warehouse.

Nine people remained hospitalized, including an 11-year-old boy in stable condition with kidney damage. New Jersey's health commissioner has said the most recent case of E. coli was reported Nov. 29, so the danger of infection appears to have passed.

E. coli is found in the feces of humans and livestock. Most E. coli infections are associated with undercooked meat. The bacteria also can be found on sprouts or leafy vegetables such as spinach. The germs can be spread by people if they do not thoroughly wash their hands after using the bathroom.

E. coli, or Escherichia coli, is a common and ordinarily harmless bacteria, but certain strains can cause abdominal cramps, fever, bloody diarrhea, kidney failure, blindness, paralysis and death.

Earlier this year, three people died and more than 200 fell ill in an E. coli outbreak that was traced to packaged, fresh spinach grown in California.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Larry Miller said the outbreak could affect Taco Bell sales in the short term. "It will take time for consumers to get confidence back, but it will come back," he said.

Taco Bell established a telephone number, 1-800-TACO BELL, for those with concerns about the outbreak.

Associated Press writers Garance Burke and Olivia Munoz in Fresno, Calif., contributed to this report.

On the Net: National Institutes of Health: MedlinePlus: E. Coli Infections

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061206/..._coli_outbreak


Jersey asks Taco Bells to throw out their food
By Nichola Groom

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - New Jersey health officials addressing an E.coli outbreak on Wednesday asked Taco Bell restaurants in the state to throw out all their food and better train workers in hygiene and food handling.

At least 47 people in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania have been infected with E.coli in the last few weeks, and dozens more potential cases are being investigated. Many of the infected people had eaten at Taco Bell prior to becoming sick, the states said.

New York state officials on Wednesday raised the number of E.coli cases associated with the Taco Bell outbreak to 15 and said 15 more are being investigated. Taco Bell officials did not respond to repeated requests for comment on Wednesday.

Earlier on Wednesday, Yum Brands Inc. unit Taco Bell said it stopped serving green onions at all of its 5,800 U.S. restaurants after tests showed three samples were found to be "presumptive positive" for the E.coli 0157:H7 strain.

New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services Commissioner Fred Jacobs said all Taco Bell restaurants in New Jersey should be sanitized and all their food should be thrown out.

In restaurants known to have associated E.coli cases, Jacobs said food workers should have their stool tested for E.coli and would need better training in proper food handling and cleanliness, the commissioner said in a statement.

An 11-year-old boy in New Jersey who suffered kidney damage due to an E.coli infection was moved out of intensive care and onto the pediatric ward late on Tuesday, a spokeswoman for Newark Beth Israel Medical Center said.

In New York, 15 E.coli cases in Suffolk, Nassau, Clinton, Oneida and Otsego counties have been linked to Taco Bell, officials said on Wednesday. The state's health department had previously identified cases in Suffolk and Nassau counties on Long Island.

Two of the four E.coli patients in Pennsylvania were also hospitalized because of their illnesses, a spokesman for that state's health department said.

New Jersey health officials said they and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration were investigating McLane Foodservice Inc. and Ready-Pac Produce in connection with the outbreak.

McLane distributes ingredients such as cheese, meat and produce to Taco Bell restaurants in New Jersey, Long Island, Pennsylvania and Delaware. Ready-Pac processes produce items including lettuce, tomatoes and onions for use in Taco Bell restaurants, officials said.

Bart McKay, an attorney for McLane, said the company's Burlington, New Jersey, facility supplies 300 Taco Bell restaurants in the region as well as other outlets operated by Yum. Ready-Pac officials were not available for comment.

The E.coli 0157:H7 strain identified by Yum in the onions causes an estimated 73,000 cases of infection and 60 deaths in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Taco Bell had closed eight restaurants on Long Island and one in New Jersey following the E.coli outbreak, but said on Tuesday that those were set to reopen.

Green onions have been linked to foodborne illness at restaurants in the past. In 2003, the O'Charley's Inc. chain said about 77 people contracted the Hepatitis A virus, which was traced to contaminated green onions.

Analysts said on Tuesday that any impact on Yum's financial results was likely to be fleeting and the stock rallied almost 3 percent that day after the company doubled its cash dividend. In addition to Taco Bell, Louisville, Kentucky-based Yum operates the KFC and Pizza Hut restaurant chains.

Yum's stock fell 98 cents, or 1.6 percent, to close at $62.28 on Wednesday.

New Jersey asks Taco Bells to throw out their food - Yahoo! News

See and here I would have had even money on taco bell getting a really good deal on foxy lettuce as the source. J/K Glad they think they have it tracked down. Fortunatly, being so poor I usually don't have to worry about restaurant incedents.