Taylor Farms found to be link in E. coli Outbreak

Taylor Farm’s slivered onions have been linked to an E. coli outbreak that sickened over 100, putting 1 man in an early grave. The FDA inspection report – redacted – makes an interesting read – Full Report: Taylor Farms Colorado, Inc. of Colorado Springs, Colorado FDA Inspection Report.

FDA inspectors said over a two week period after the outbreak, they found sanitation violations at Taylor Farms Colorado, Inc. These include a failure to “conduct operations under conditions and controls necessary to minimize the potential for contamination of food.”

The FDA said the inspection was prompted by the outbreak. And though the document says the claims are “inspectional observations,” the document also says the observations “do not represent a final Agency determination.”

Inspectors categorized their observations into three categories: sanitation preventive control, monitoring, and not processing food “under conditions and controls necessary to minimize the potential for contamination of food.”

”Slivered onions and other processed vegetables are RTE (Ready to Eat) and exposed to the environment from the (redacted) step to the (redacted) step,” the report said. “According to management, the (redacted)-step is not a lethal treatment that would remove the biological hazard.”

The report cites examples of hazards, including:

• Not allowing equipment to air dry after sanitation, which is instructed by the manufacturer of the sanitizing solution;
• Production rooms “maintained at temperatures that would support the growth of pathogenic organisms such as Listeria;”
• Marking an internal visual inspection as “pass” when it should have been marked “fail.” 
• Mixing of products that shouldn’t be mixed, resulting in a customer complaint that they received onions mixed in with green peppers when it should have been just onions.

“During the inspection dates 10/28/2024 to 10/31/24, I observed several food contact surfaces … with food debris present after several full rounds of the firm’s (redacted) -step sanitation process,” the report read. 

Additionally, the report said the company’s verification methods for identifying hazards, “are not designed to determine the types of pathogens present on a surface.”

And it wasn’t just the equipment sanitation practices that inspectors found faulty.

According to the report, employees “were not observed” washing their hands and putting on new gloves once they touched unclean surfaces. Instead, they reportedly sanitized their gloved hands. Management also reported it’s “common practice for employees to only use hand sanitizer stations in the production areas.”

”Production employees handling RTE produce and food contact surfaces were not observed using any of the handwashing sinks in the facility. Employees would sometimes use the hand sanitizer over their gloved hands only.”

Republished with permission from Bill Marler and Marler Clark. Copyright (c) Marler Clark LLP, PS. All rights reserved.