Taco Bell nixes green onions

Today, Taco Bell ordered all of its stores to stop using green onions in its fast food. Taco Bell, a unit of Yum Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM), does not have conclusive proof that green onions are the source of a recent E. coli breakout in its stores in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. But given that green onions have been linked to such outbreaks in the past, the company decided to stop serving the savory bulb as a matter of caution.

Ben Berkowitz blogged about this earlier this week. He actually suffered through an E. coli infection as a child, and reminds us how serious this can be. Children have died from the bacteria in the past, so extreme caution is well-advised.

The larger question is why E. coli outbreaks have become a regular feature of the American food system. Is it an inevitable product of how food is produced in the U.S.? Farming in the U.S. is now dominated by large corporations and industrial methods. Waste from massive feed lots inevitably contaminates fruit and vegetables through shared irrigation systems. And industrial meat processing seems to increase the infection of meat. It may be that the whole system needs more careful monitoring and regulation. It may be more expensive, but I for one would pay a little more to avoid eating an E. coli sandwich.

If you are concerned about this, or if you have recently eaten in a Taco Bell and have questions, you can call 1-800-TACO BELL to contact the company.