Coli Outbreak Linked to Chipotle Expands Into Maryland, Other States

The E. coli outbreak linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill has now sickened 52 people and led to 20 hospitalizations in nine states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Investigators on Friday added Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania to the list of states reporting illness. Since then, additional cases have been reported in California, Minnesota New York, and Ohio.

Of the 52 reported cases, 47 reported eating at Chipotle before becoming ill, said the CDC.

Bill Marler of Seattle law firm Marler Clark commented that people should not totally rely on a company that uses only local and fresh ingredients, since it is not immune from food safety issues.

In the wake of two high-profile food poisoning outbreaks, Chipotle has announced its intention to become a leader in food safety. The chain will conduct DNA-based tests to analyze quality and safety of produce before it’s sent to restaurants, subject suppliers to quality testing and bolster worker training, among other measures. Most infected people get diarrhea and abdominal cramps. As of November 10, 2015, it operated approximately 1,900 restaurants, including 17 Chipotle restaurants outside the United States and 11 ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen restaurants.

The company expects to incur $6 million-$8 million in one-time expenses that include lab analysis of food samples, replacing food in certain restaurants, and retaining expert advisory services, according to the Friday filing.

Shares of the company’s stock have dropped 25 percent since mid-October.

“In testing for pathogens, in many ways you’re looking for needles in haystacks”.

“It’s important to note that, while these cases are newly reported, they are not really new, in that the exposure continues to be in the mid-October to early-November time frame, and they are just now making their way through the reporting process”, said Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold, as reported in the Wall Street Journal. It said that no ingredients that are likely to have been linked with the outbreak remain in its restaurants.

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