Marler Blog

September 21, 2026

Deterrence and Detection: A Shout Out to Tom Gremillion — and a Few Points to Add

Just landed in Norway, and the first thing I read off the plane was Tom Gremillion’s new piece for the Consumer Federation of America, “Food Safety and Corruption.” Read the whole thing. Nobody in Washington connects the dots on food safety better than Tom, and nobody says it more plainly. Thank you, Tom — for the piece, […]

December 14, 2006

Family Sues Taco John’s

Iowa’s top story on KWWL tonight is that – Taco John’s faces some legal fall-out from a recent E. coli outbreak. An eastern Iowa girl remains hospitalized after eating tacos at a Cedar Falls Taco John’s restaurant two weeks ago.  Nine year old Autumn Saul became very sick, suffering from diarrhea and abdominal cramps.  She […]

December 14, 2006

UPDATE on Taco John’s E. Coli infections and Lawsuit

Minnesota E. coli cases match those in Iowa; distinct from cases in Northeast U.S. According to both the Minnesota and Iowa Health Departments at least five cases of E. coli O157 infection in people who ate at Taco John’s restaurants in Albert Lea and Austin share the same genetic fingerprint as cases from a similar […]

December 14, 2006

Health officials link at least 77 Iowa, Minnesota E. coli cases

Henry Jackson – Associated Press Des Moines, Iowa Not suprisingly, health officials in Iowa and Minnesota on Wednesday confirmed a link between E. coli outbreaks at Taco John’s restaurants that have sickened dozens of customers.  Officials also said that the cause of the outbreak – which has sickened at least 50 people in Iowa and […]

December 13, 2006

Taco John’s Outbreak Update – Dozens ill in Minnesota and Iowa

According to press reports from Minneapolis, 14 illnesses now have been linked to E. coli contamination at Taco John’s restaurants in southeast Minnesota, according to the Minnesota Health Department.  Several of those ill have suffered Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome – acute kidney failure.  Lab tests have confirmed five cases, and nine more are suspected. Seven are […]

December 12, 2006

Restaurant association vows to work to make food safer – Group may get more involved with food suppliers, producers

Karen Robinson-Jacobs of the Dallas Morning News wrote an interesting article for Wednesday’s morning paper – a few excerpts: Faced with several high-profile cases of tainted food in recent months, the largest restaurant trade group vowed Tuesday to “raise the bar” on food safety.  The group’s comments came as authorities are investigating how at least […]

December 12, 2006

So, what is it with Tacos?

We were recently contacted by an Iowa resident who appears to have contracted E. coli O157:H7 (E. coli) after eating at Taco John’s in Cedar Falls, Iowa. At last count, nearly three dozen people have fallen ill with E. coli infections after eating at the Ceder Falls Taco John’s restaurant and one in Albert Lea, […]

December 12, 2006

What is it with Tacos?

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. […]

December 10, 2006

E. coli outbreak leaves more than two dozen sick in Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA — Officials in Cedar Falls, Iowa say an E. coli outbreak at the Taco Johns has made more than two dozen people sick with at least 14 hospitalized.  This after Taco Bell pulled green onions from thousands of its restaurants after people in several states were sickened by E. coli. And two […]

December 10, 2006

Food Safety Attorney calls for Congressional Hearings on Poisoned Produce

September was “Food Safety Month.” During September and the ensuing two months there have been at least four reported bacterial outbreaks tied to produce. The bacteria have been the deadly E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella. The produce: spinach, tomatoes and now green onions. First it was announced that over 200 people were sickened, many with acute kidney failure, and […]

December 09, 2006

Op-ed

Op-ed December 9, 2006 In an opinion piece this morning entitled “Sickened by Fresh Produce” the Editorial Page of the New York Times has weighed into the produce fields and found them contaminated too often with E. coli O157:H7. “The expanding outbreak of E. coli poisonings in New York, New Jersey and several other states […]

December 06, 2006

Not to pile on Taco Bell, but how many times does lightning need to strike?

2000 TACO BELL HEPATITIS A OUTBREAK TIED TO GREEN ONIONS In early December, 2000, Lake County Florida Health Department (LCHD) learned of seven hepatitis A cases, including five hospitalizations, in Lake and neighboring Sumter Counties in a two week span. During the previous two years, the total number of known hepatitis A cases in Lake […]

December 06, 2006

Green Onions Again?

Taco Bell, Distributor Probed by Federal Regulators According to a Bloomberg report, Yum! Brands Inc.’s Taco Bell chain and a supplier are being probed by state and federal regulators after an outbreak of E. coli sickened dozens of people and the chain closed 18 restaurants.  What makes this interesting is that Green Onions may be […]

December 05, 2006

The Distributor fingered by Taco Bell is?

The distributor, Texas-based McLane Co., said Taco Bell representatives and state and federal health inspectors toured the distribution center in Burlington, N.J., that supplied the eight Long Island restaurants and the three in New Jersey.  Question, did it also distribute to Pennsylvania?

December 01, 2006

Why I will always have a job

Food Inspectors Crack Down On Illegal Cuisine – Some Markets Get Foods From Unregulated Sources CBS and the Associated Press report that when a food safety inspector walked into a market in Queens, he noticed the store had an interesting special posted on its front window: 12 beefy armadillos. In Brooklyn, inspectors found 15 pounds […]

December 01, 2006

Norovirus Strikes Again?

According to Syracuse (WSYR-TV), the Onondaga County Health Department now says more than 600 people have reported getting sick after eating at the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que restaurant last weekend. The owner of the popular restaurant in downtown Syracuse agreed Thursday, to close the business through this weekend while the health department investigates.  The restaurant’s owner, John […]

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