Chipotle E. coli outbreak spreads to California and three additional states

The big E. Coli scare over at Chipotle has now made its way to The Buckeye State after representatives for the popular Mexican food restaurant assured the public their was nothing to worry about. Cases were reported in Minnesota earlier, while the majority of illnesses have been in OR and Washington.

Since the last update from the CDC, victims from California, New York, and OH have been confirmed, and it’s thought that this revelation could spark further people infected with E. coli to come forward.

“At the moment, we do not believe that it is necessary to close any restaurants”, Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold said in an email to the Associated Press. The investigation is ongoing to determine what specific food is linked to this illness.

Chipotle said in a statement that investigators have suggested that it is not unusual to see additional cases as an investigation moves forward. Originally, the outbreak seemed to be contained to Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington. No deaths have been reported, said the CDC. The company closed 43 restaurants as a precaution.

In Washington, 26 cases have been reported, with another 13 in OR, according to the CDC.

The new reports of illness were linked to Chipotle outlets with two cases in Burnsville, Minnesota; one in Akron, Ohio; two cases in Turlock, California; and one in Amherst, New York. But this is the third food safety lapse this year for the company, which has hurt its reputation, Reuters notes. The spokesperson for the company said that Chipotle Mexican Grill had taken all measures including deep cleaning in restaurants, replacing ingredients and providing supply chain data to investigators.

Chipotle, which is based in Denver, has about 1,900 restaurants, including more than 40 in the Bay Area.

The news agency also reported that shares in Chipotle plummeted 12.3% on Friday, dropping to $536.19, spurred by concerns the chain was damaging its “Food with Integrity” tagline.

“There has to be a common supplier with a common food item”, Marler said.