The 5 state, 12 victim E. coli outbreak linked to sprouts on Jimmy Johns sandwiches has sickened 3 women in Greene County, Missouri.  No surprise that this outbreak is linked to both sprouts and Jimmy Johns, as the two have mingled with bad consequences at least 3 times before.  The women were aged 25 through 49.  In addition to the Missouri E. coli victims, 9 others from Iowa, Arkansas, and Wisconsin were sickened in the Jimmy Johns sprouts E. coli outbreak. 

The sprouts appear to have come from an Inman Kansas farm called Sweetwater Farms.  The owner, John Hershberger, states that federal investigators have not conclusively linked the seeds to the outbreak.

Missouri has been hit hard by the E. coli bug in years past, resulting in lots of lawsuits.  The most recent is the Schnuck’s romaine lettuce E. coli O157:H7 outbreak, which sickened at least 60 people, mostly from Missouri.  Marler Clark has filed multiple lawsuits on behalf of several seriously injured victims, and identified the distributor of the contaminated lettuce as Vaughan Foods, from Oklahoma. 

Herb Depot and Autumn Olive Farm Unpasteurized (Raw) Goat Milk 2008: A child developed hemolytic uremic syndrome after consuming raw goat’s milk that had been purchased at a local store, the Herb Depot. Another child was identified to have E.coli O157:H7; this child’s family reported consuming milk that had been purchased from the same store. The investigation found that the milk had been produced by Autumn Olive Farm. The strain of E.coli found in this outbreak was unique and shared by three laboratory confirmed cases.

Totino’s frozen pizza E. coli O157:H7 outbreak (2007): At least 21 people were sickened by E. coli O157:H7 after eating Totino’s or Jeno’s brand pizzas produced by General Mills in Fall 2007. Outbreak victims were from Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin. General Mills initiated a broad recall of the contaminated products after they were linked to E. coli illnesses in the outbreak.

Kids Korner Daycare E. coli Outbreak 2004: Marler Clark represented the family of a two-year-old boy and his eight-month-old sister who both attended Kids’ Korner and became ill with E. coli infections. The two-year-old boy developed HUS and was hospitalized for nearly three weeks. He endured a full week of dialysis, seven transfusions, three surgeries, and a severe case of pancreatitis. Many other children were also sickened in the outbreak, and several of them developed HUS.