Coli Outbreak Linked To Costco Seems To Be Over

The CDC also said there was one new E. coli case reported that was related to the original outbreak.

Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University’s School of Medicine, says this number of outbreaks tied to a single chain is somewhat unprecedented. The first cases were reported primarily in Washington and Oregon.

All microbial testing performed by Chipotle, including more than 2,500 samples of ingredients, restaurant surfaces and equipment, did not yield E. coli, the FDA said. Twenty people were hospitalized in that outbreak, according to previous accounts.

Chipotle said the three most recently reported illnesses all stemmed from two restaurants: one in Oklahoma and one in Kansas.

A logo of Chipotle Mexican Grill is seen on one of their cups in Manhattan, New York, November 23. The company is in the process of implementing these programs. He noted that even the most recent exposures reported by the CDC are now a month old. The analyst, who views the CDC’s “strong allusion” that these new cases are “probably unrelated” to the prior outbreak as “very surprising and disappointing”, now believes the consensus forecasts for Chipotle’s earnings in fiscal 2016 and 2017 are “far too high” given that the news flow shows the impact of the company’s health issues continuing.

Chipotle co-CEO Steve Ells has told The Associated Press he doesn’t think the company will ever know for sure the exact ingredient that sickened customers in the larger outbreak, but that he believes it was bacteria in fresh food like tomatoes or cilantro. Those points of differentiation have always been marketing strengths for Chipotle, which has sought to distinguish itself as being of higher quality than traditional fast-food chains.

The FDA said it is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local officials.

Preliminary testing of a sample of diced celery and onion blend collected from a Costco location by the Montana Public Health Laboratory indicated the presence of E. coli O157:H7.

The seven-state E. coli outbreak linked to Costco’s chicken salad is over, with officials still unable to determine the root cause. The stock fell as low as 508.10 intraday, which was the lowest since May 2014.