A recent outbreak of E. coli linked to Chipotle restaurants in nine USA states has caused sales to plummet by as much as 22 percent in recent weeks, the restaurant chain announced on Friday.
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“Seven more ill people have been reported from California (1), IL (1), Maryland (1), OH (2), Pennsylvania (1), and Washington (1)…two of these illnesses started in October, five started in November”, said the CDC on Friday in a statement.
Then, on November 20, health investigators decided that DNA doesn’t lie and included the Minnesota case along with another case from that state and cases from California, New York and Ohio.
Of the 52 people interviewed by CDC investigators, 47 reported eating at a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant before becoming sick, according to the CDC.
The ingredient responsible for the illnesses has not yet been determined.
To prevent another E. Coli outbreak and other foodborne disease, Chipotle launched their brand new food safety program.
Fifty-two people from nine states have now been infected with the outbreak strain tied to Chipotle, a lot of them from Washington and Oregon.
In the filing, Chipotle also said its board had authorized share buybacks worth $300 million, in addition to previously announced repurchases totaling about $1 billion.
Since the first reported illness in October, 20 people have been hospitalized. While the symptoms resolve in about a week for most, there are more vulnerable people that can develop kidney failure, or even death.
For its fourth quarter, the company estimates earnings per share in the range of $2.45 to $2.85, while analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to earn $4.00 per share.
On December, the CDC again issued an update on the investigation. Also negative for E. coli were the results of 900 tests on samples from restaurant equipment and surfaces.
According to the company, its shares dropped almost 8% to $518 in extended trading after the popular burrito chain warned that its sales might drop eight to 11% for the fourth quarter from a year earlier.
Chipotle, according to a company release, enhanced its food safety practices after an assessment by IEH Laboratories.
The technical numbers for Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. are as follows: It has a simple moving average 50 of -14.08%, a 52 week high of -26.02%, and a 52 week low of 5.48%.
“In testing for pathogens, in many ways you’re looking for needles in haystacks”.
An outbreak of E.Coli has been linked to Chipotle’s all over the country recently.
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The CDC is still investigating the source of the outbreak.
