E. coli outbreak linked to Chipotle expands

The government investigators added Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania to a list of states that already included California, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Oregon and Washington.

Of the 52 people sickened, officials said 20 were hospitalized. A food source for the E. coli outbreak has not been identified.

Of the three most recent illnesses reported in November, only one ill person reported eating at Chipotle Mexican Grill in the week before their illness began, the CDC says.

The Mexican food chain says it hired IEH Laboratories to help improve its system after reports in late October that linked E. coli cases to its restaurants in OR and Washington.

Despite the failure to track down the source of E. coli, the CDC said it believes the spread originated with the restaurant chain. The reported cases occurred between October 19 and November 13, officials said, and 90 percent (47) of those afflicted told investigators that they had eaten at a Chipotle location.

Chipotle said earlier Friday that it would overhaul its food-safety procedures after the outbreak.

Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold said in an email that “none of the ingredients that were in our restaurants at the time of this incident are still in our restaurants”.

Chipotle also said it expects non-recurring expenses of $6 million to $8 million in the period to replace food in select restaurants, to do lab analysis of food samples and environmental swabs and to retain advisory services related to disease control and food safety.

Costco removed the chicken salad from its stores and Taylor Farms Pacific, Inc., which produced the celery and onion blend, recalled several products containing celery, the CDC reported.

Chipotle and other restaurants have put greater focus on fresh, unprocessed food. That’s down from last year’s $3.84 per share. Only about 40 percent of reported foodborne disease outbreaks from 2002 to 2011 were solved, according to the watchdog group Center for Science in the Public Interest.