The green onions suspected of triggering an E. coli outbreak at Taco Bell restaurants in the United States came from a southern California grower, company officials said Thursday.
Steve Dickstein, marketing vice president for Ready Pac Produce, said it was the sole supplier of green onions to the fast-food chain. He said the company has halted processing of scallions at its New Jersey plant.
In September, Ready Pac pulled its bagged spinach from the shelves when U.S. investigators traced a nationwide E. coli outbreak to a San Juan Bautista processing plant. The outbreak sickened 200 people, including a person in Canada, and killed three people in the United States.
Taco Bell Canada is voluntarily removing green onions from all of its 182 restaurants following an E. coli outbreak in the United States that has made at least 46 people sick. No associated incidents of illness have occurred in Canada.
Officials with the Canadian branch of the fast-food chain said Wednesday evening that it was taking the precaution after learning that some of its outlets relied on supply sources similar to those restaurants linked to the outbreak in the United States.
"As a precautionary voluntary measure, we have made the decision to take immediate action and remove green onions from all our restaurants in Canada until we know conclusively the root cause of the E. coli outbreak in the U.S.," said Jon Prinsell, the president of Yum! Canada, which operates Taco Bell Canada.
"We are working closely with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency throughout this investigation," he said in a release.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday that it is collecting samples of all non-meat items served in the restaurants, including cilantro, cheddar cheese, blended cheese, green onions, yellow onions, tomatoes and lettuce.
Confirmed cases reported
Confirmed cases of illness linked to Taco Bell have been reported in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. The FDA said it was also investigating potential cases in Delaware and Connecticut.
Taco Bell has also closed 15 restaurants in Philadelphia on the recommendation of the city's Department of Public Health. Two restaurants on New York's Long Island and an outlet in South Plainfield, N.J., remained closed to be cleaned up.
Five people are in hospital, including an 11-year-old boy in stable condition with kidney damage. Attorneys for the boy's family filed suit Wednesday, claiming that the restaurant's negligence led to the E. coli outbreak.
State health officials said they believe the danger of infection has passed, given that the most recent case of E. coli was reported on Nov. 29.
E. coli stands for Escherichia coli, a bacterium commonly found in the intestines of animals and humans, as well as in undercooked meat, sprouts and leafy vegetables. It can cause abdominal cramps, fever, bloody diarrhea, kidney failure, paralysis and death.
With files from the Associated Press
Taco Bell fast food restaurant in Santa Cruz, California.
Taco Bell restaurants decided Wednesday to remove green onions from all 5,800 of its continental U.S. stores after a November 29 outbreak of E.coli food poisonings caused the voluntary closing of 9 mid-Atlantic states stores and led health officials to investigate the chain's regional supplier. As many as 66 people reportedly became ill in New York City, Long Island, New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

The E.coli outbreak also caused Taco Bell Canada to recall green onions from all 182 locations across Canada. Officials with the Canadian branch said Wednesday evening that they would take precaution by removing green onions from all stores in Canada after hearing of the outbreak in the U.S.

Jon Prinsell, president of Yum! Canada, which operates Taco Bell Canada commented:


The U.S. Food and Drug Administration are currently collecting samples of all non-meat items including cilantro, cheddar cheese, blended cheese, green onions, yellow onions, tomatoes, and lettuce.

A man from Pennsylvania became sick after eating at Taco Bell and sued the owner of Taco Bell headquarters in Irvine, California. Another one includes a 11-year-old boy who ate at Taco Bell, was hospitalized in New York, and also sued the owner.

Most of the E. coli related sicknesses occurred in the northeast USA. No related sickness have occurred in Canada.

Health officials investigating the source of the tainted green onions, also known as scallions, have traced the vegetable's food distribution chain to the Texas-based McLane Co., which in turn got them from Irwindale-based Ready Pac.

The scallions were grown by Boskovich Farms Inc. of Oxnard, California said Steve Dickstein, the marketing vice president for Ready Pac. At what point in the food distribution chain the scallions became tainted remains under investigation.