According to the Washington Post this morning, “authorities in three states are investigating hundreds more cases of food poisoning in the northeastern United States, and federal investigators said yesterday that their prime suspect, green onions, may not have caused the outbreak.”  What is important is the MAY – although the FDA did not find E. coli O157:H7 in the samples that Taco Bell had found positive test, it does not mean that green onions are cleared.  Given that Taco Bell has pulled onions from its nearly 6,000 restaurants and fired one if its suppliers, green onions are still the most likely source of this outbreak.  Also in the news – the numbers rise, now possibly passing the recent spinach E. coli outbreak that sickened over 200 and killed 4:

• All of the 64 confirmed cases of E. coli poisoning, in five states, are limited to people who ate at Taco Bell restaurants. New York, New Jersey and Delaware authorities are investigating 388 possible cases of food poisoning, according to their Web sites. Pennsylvania is investigating more cases.

And what is it with Tacos?

• Meanwhile, nearly three dozen people have fallen ill with symptoms consistent with E. coli infection after eating at a Taco John’s restaurant in Cedar Falls, Iowa.  There is no indication the outbreaks are linked but the CDC has not ruled out a connection, said Christopher Braden, a medical epidemiologist with the agency. Iowa officials suspect that a sick restaurant worker could have spread the illness. The two restaurant chains are not related.