The following is a statement released by Taco Bell President Greg Creed in reference to the recent Taco Bell-linked E.coli outbreak in New Jersey:

“As soon as we learned of an E.coli issue, we immediately began working with state and county health officials to assist in their investigation. tAs a precautionary measure, we voluntarily closed one restaurant in Middlesex County, New Jersey, and four in Suffolk County, New York. As an extra precaution, we are in the process of sanitizing these isolated restaurants and replacing all the food ingredients before reopening these five restaurants. We are unsure what has occurred, but health officials have indicated that there is no immediate threat and whatever may have occurred has most likely passed through the system since there have been no new cases since November 29. Nothing is more important to us than the health and safety of our customers and employees. We are obviously very concerned about the well-being of all those who have been affected by this incident and will continue to work closely with health authorities to get to the root cause of the issue.”