Chipotle reopening Northwest restaurants after outbreak
SEATTLE (AP) — Chipotle said Tuesday that it is reopening the 43 Pacific Northwest restaurants it closed amid an E. coli outbreak after tests at the Mexican food chain came back negative for the bacteria.
Health officials have not found a cause of the outbreak that started last month but concluded there is no ongoing risk of contracting the illness that has sickened about 40 people.
"The safety of our customers and integrity of our food supply has always been our highest priority," he said in a statement.
Though health officials have not found the cause, it does not mean they are not blaming Chipotle for people falling ill, said Seattle attorney Bill Marler, who has filed two lawsuits on behalf of people sickened in the outbreak.