As US health authorities have finally declared the end of two separate outbreaks of E. coli that sickened dozens of customers at Mexican restaurant chain Chipotle in the United States. “The investigation did not identify a specific food or ingredient linked to illness”, the CDC reported.
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In the first outbreak 55 people were infected by the foodborne illness in 11 states, of which 21 were hospitalized. A second, smaller outbreak involved a different strain of E. coli and affected five people in three states. No one died in either outbreak, though E. coli is considered unsafe and can cause bloody diarrhea and kidney failure, even death. The most recent case of illness was reported December 1, 2015.
According to a company spokesperson, Chipotle has made every effort to improve the safety of all of its food items.
In January, Chipotle executives announced the company will strive to reduce the risk of another food contamination scare to “near zero”. The chain also plans to increase its marketing and direct-mail offers this month. And reportedly, more lawsuits are coming from victims of the outbreak!
Of course, some of the problem is specifically to do with E. Coli being a notoriously hard bacteria to track, due to the long gap between when you eat it and when you get sick. A Chipotle restaurant in Boston was shuttered for weeks in December after a norovirus outbreak there sickened more than 140 students from nearby Boston College. But when the news cycle quiets down, so does concern about food safety.
Despite the scrutiny for months from investors and the CDC, Chipotle continues to have a loyal customer base.
“Young adults represent the largest share of Chipotle’s overall traffic”, said Bonnie Riggs, NPD’s restaurant industry analyst.
Chipotle’s stock fell from highs of almost $800 before news of the outbreak to just more than half that as the bad press raged on.
The food safety scandal has led the Chipotle chain to revamp food safety policies, including implementing DNA testing on all ingredients before they are shipped to restaurants.
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The epidemiologic evidence collected during this investigation suggested that a common meal item or ingredient served at Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants was a likely source of both outbreaks.
