Statistically, fast food restaurants have smaller outbreaks of norovirus, instead replacing the illness for another more common one presented at fast food establishments, in the form of salmonella.
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The outbreak in Boston, in addition to the multi-state E. coli outbreak, prompted Chipotle founder and CEO, Steve Ells to to make an apology during a nationally televised interview Thursday-“I have to say I’m sorry for the people that got sick, Ells said”.
The E.coli outbreak has sickened folks across nine states and if that wasn’t bad enough, 141 students at Boston College reportedly contracted the norovirus after eating at a local Chipotle.
Diverting from the recent cases of E. coli sickness related with Chipotle restaurants, these students had in fact contacted norovirus and not the E. Coli infection as everyone had initially suspected.
After receiving reports of multiple cases of gastrointestinal illness among patrons who ate at the Chipotle Mexican Grill in Cleveland Circle, the Boston Public Health Commission, the City of Boston Inspectional Services Department, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health launched an investigation to determine the cause and the nature of the illness. It said results will not be available for at least two days.
The virus is very contagious and can be spread through food, water, touching contaminated surfaces or having contact with an infected person, health officials said. It causes as many as 21 million illnesses annually, often in places such as hospitals, cruise ships and universities where people eat and live in close quarters.
The symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and some stomach cramping. The first cases were reported at the end of October in OR and Washington, with additional cases being reported later.
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As for just what Ells means by “doing a lot to rectify” the situation, he explained that the company is now implementing new food safety and testing practices that will put it “10 to 15 years ahead of industry” standards. But he noted the E. coli cases are “all the more damaging” for Chipotle because of its “Food With Integrity” slogan. That and the holding temperature for the meat was too low.
