By Hector Flores
Company officials said last week that preliminary test results showed that green onions had tested positive for E-coli and were removed from the restaurants. State officials, however, said that their more recent findings suggest that the green onions were not solely responsible for the outbreak.
Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi said that the county is working with the state to provide the most up-to-date information. "We are taking every possible step to protect and inform the public as quickly as information becomes available," Suozzi said. "We are working closely with the New York State Department of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Taco Bell and Suffolk County to closely monitor the situation and get out information quickly and accurately."
Taco Bell officials insist that their restaurants are safe, saying that an independent lab tested more than 150 samples of ingredients served at the restaurants and found that none were contaminated with E-coli. "We've taken this health issue very seriously, and are extremely concerned for all those who are ill," said Greg Creed, president of Taco Bell Corp. "Our company has moved quickly to safeguard the health of our customers and employees. Based on our independent testing and all that we know, I can reassure you that every Taco Bell is safe, and strict standards are being upheld at all of our restaurants. We will be working quickly to reopen our closed restaurants to serve our customers."
Taco Bell's earlier preliminary test results showed that green onions were "presumptive positive" for E-coli, which prompted the company to immediately remove them from its restaurants as a precaution. The company does not plan to sell green onions again.
The Food and Drug Administration, which is working with Taco Bell, said it has yet to determine the cause of the E-coli outbreak and is still conducting its investigation. The FDA issued the following comment: "To date, no data implicates or rules out any specific food item served at the Taco Bell restaurants. FDA has obtained samples of all non-meat items served in the restaurants that could carry the pathogen. These include cilantro, cheddar cheese, blended cheese, green onions, yellow onions, tomatoes and lettuce. The samples are being tested at FDA and at state laboratories."
81 reported cases
Since the E-coli outbreak was reported by the county on Dec. 4, the Department of Health has received reports of 81 residents who have become ill after eating at a Taco Bell restaurant, but only four cases have been confirmed.
The latest to test positive for the bacteria was a 19-year-old who ate at a Taco Bell in Lynbrook. The teenager was not hospitalized. At the request of the county health department, the restaurant closed, threw away its food supply and disinfected the premises before reopening. The health department has also directed Taco Bell to test more than 200 employees who work at the seven restaurants in Nassau County that have been linked to E-coli infections.
On Dec. 6, the county asked Taco Bell to close six of its restaurants temporarily, discard their food and disinfect. They included locations at the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, at the Broadway Mall in Hicksville, on Front Street in East Meadow, on Peninsula Boulevard in Hempstead, on Sunrise Highway in Seaford and on Jericho Turnpike in New Hyde Park.
³The county's health department has been inspecting the Taco Bell locations suspected of being involved in this outbreak,² Suozzi said, ³and are making sure the proper procedures are being followed before they reopen.²
Finding the cause
Dr. Abby Greenberg, the county's director of disease control, said that the county began investigating reported cases of E-coli after there were a cluster of reports in New Jersey and then Nassau County. ³We are not trying to put Taco Bell out of business,² Greenberg said, ³but of the cases under investigation, we have six confirmed locations of infection.²
Greenberg said that the county is continuing to survey every Taco Bell location and area hospitals for suspected cases. "The health department will determine when it is safe," he said.
Creed said, that the company would only re-open the restaurants that fulfill the criteria developed and agreed to by the health department. "We are very concerned for those who have become ill, and our thoughts are with them as we continue to work closely with health officials," he said.
An E-coli infection is often signaled by bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps. According to the health department, people become infected in a variety of ways, but often by eating under-cooked ground beef or contaminated fresh vegetables.
Symptoms usually appear about three days after exposure, but can also emerge anywhere from one to nine days afterward. Although most healthy adults can recover completely within a week, some can develop hemolytic uremic syndrome, a form of kidney failure. This condition, which mostly affects young children and the elderly, can lead to serious kidney damage and even death.
Government involvement
In the wake of the infections, U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy is asking Congress to increase federal oversight of the food industry. "Federal efforts to monitor our nation's food supply have been hampered by jurisdictional restrictions and decreased funding for the Food and Drug Administration," she said.
McCarthy added that the reduction in funding for the FDA has resulted in 25 percent fewer on-site inspections of agricultural processors in 2006.
Creed agreed, saying that in light of the E-coli outbreak, there needs to be a thorough federal review. "We need to review whether there should be better controls across the entire industry to assure safety at the farm level so that consumers know that their produce is safe -- whether its been purchased at a restaurant, supermarket or farm, " Creed said. "Taco Bell is committed to supporting an industry coalition including government regulators, competitors, suppliers and other experts so we can develop improved guidelines and procedures to safeguard the produce supply chain and public health."
Contact the county
Anyone who has come down with symptoms of E-coli infection on or after Nov. 15, and who ate at a Taco Bell, is encouraged to contact the county health department at (516) 571-3680.
Comments? HFlores@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 283.
