An E. coli outbreak that has sickened eight people in the Denver area is the fourth food poisoning outbreak linked to Jimmy John’s in the last two and a half years. Health officials suspect produce is the source of the outbreak but have not disclosed the specific kind. In the previous outbreaks, sprouts have been source of contamination.
Health officials believe that contaminated produce was delivered to Jimmy John’s Denver-area stores and then served to customers between October 7th and 15th. They do not believe the tainted product is still in circulation.
Since 2011, there have been three other food poisoning outbreaks linked to Jimmy John’s. The source of all of them was sprouts.
In 2012, 29 people in 11 states were sickened with E.coli 026 infections after eating sandwiches with sprouts.The onset of illness dates ranged from December 25, 2011 to March 3, 2012. Seven people were hospitalized.
In Januray 2011, a Salmonella Newport outbreak that sickened six people in Oregon and Washington was linked to sprouts served a Jimmy John’s restaurants. This outbreak was separate from another Jimmy John’s “sproutbreak” that was ongoing at the time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued its final report on that outbreak one month later.
In February 2011, the CDC’s final report on a Salmonella outbreak that sickened 140 people in 26 states and the District of Columbia, identified the outbreak strain as Salmonella serotype I 4,[5],12:i: That outbreak was linked to Tiny Greens Alfalfa Sprouts or Spicy Sprouts at Jimmy John’s restaurants.
