ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – Digging into allegations that the federal government is keeping consumers in the dark, as victims have now filed a new lawsuit after a local E. coli outbreak.
The new lawsuit stems from the large outbreak Fist Alert 4 first told you about last November.
St. Louis County health authorities confirmed more than 100 local victims in the outbreak. Nine were hospitalized. Some of the victims attended the same catered events.
An attorney is now naming Taylor Farms of California as the source of the E. coli outbreak, and telling First Alert 4 Investigates he plans to drop the case against Andre’s Catering Company in our area, where people consumed the tainted romaine lettuce.
Taylor Farms, though, denies being the source and, either way, the government isn’t saying what it believes.
First Alert 4 Investigates has been reaching out to the CDC and FDA, asking them to release the information publicly. First Alert 4 Investigates wanted to give them the opportunity to do the right thing.
They didn’t. So that’s why we’re here.
Bill Marler is an attorney representing several St. Louis-area victims who were sickened with E. coli last year.
“Three of the people I represent—two children, ages 8 and 15, and a woman in her 60s—developed acute kidney failure,” he said. “That means it is likely, in their lifetime, their kidneys are going to fail. They’ll require either a transplant, if they’re lucky, or lifetime dialysis.”
The outbreak, according to the federal government, was eventually linked to 89 cases across 15 states. But in an internal memo dated Feb. 11, the Department of Health and Human Services connected the cases to romaine lettuce from a specific grower—and closed the investigation—but redacted the name of the grower.
Something Marler says is ridiculous.
“For me to eat romaine lettuce that the FDA has decided we don’t have a right to know who grew—it just doesn’t make sense to me,” said Marler.
He claims the cases point to Taylor Farms, and that’s why he is now suing them on behalf of one victim from the St. Louis region and others in Indiana.
Though in a statement, the company adamantly disputes the allegations, writing:
“Any reporting that connects Taylor Farms products to these heartbreaking illnesses is dangerous, irresponsible and unfair to the impacted families.”
Taylor Farms was named by the CDC in 2024 as the provider of onions that caused issues with McDonald’s Quarter Pounders.
But Marler says reporting on outbreaks and alerting the public is no longer a priority for this administration. He claims that with recent cuts, the CDC and FDA have been gutted and are no longer being transparent.
“This is about as opaque as it gets,” said Marler.
Marler says they’ll be dismissing their lawsuit claims against the local catering company Andre’s. Its owner, John Armengol Jr., sent First Alert 4 Investigates a statement:
“There have been two truths since the national E. coli outbreak six months ago: My business should have never been named publicly until the investigation was complete, and my company has been a victim in this ordeal.”
Marler says it’s up to the government to provide accurate, up-to-date information. By concealing the providers, he says, they’re denying the public the right to know.
“The FDA and CDC have exactly the same information I have,” Marler said. “They just chose not to tell us.”
We reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services but have not yet heard back.
Taylor Farms also tells us they are considering legal action to defend themselves against the claims.
Full Statement from Taylor Farms:
“Taylor Farms product WAS NOT the source of the referenced 2024 E. Coli outbreak. We perform extensive raw and finished product testing on all our product and there was no evidence of contamination. Any reporting that connects Taylor Farms products to these heartbreaking illnesses is dangerous, irresponsible and unfair to the impacted families.”
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