ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – Nearly six months after a St. Louis County E. coli outbreak, two new lawsuits allege lettuce from California-based Taylor Farms led Missouri residents to suffer acute kidney failure after contracting the virus. 

The outbreak included 89 people in 15 states infected by the E. Coli 0157:H7 strain, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The St. Louis County Department of Public Health said at least 25 local cases were linked to the same strain in the multi-state outbreak. 

Washington-based Marler Clark law firm announced the new and amended lawsuits Thursday. 

"Because we represent people and families from several states that were WGS matches to each other, it was not long until our on-staff Epidemiologist determined that the common link was that all clients consumed Taylor Farms romaine lettuce in the outbreak period,” Bill Marler, E. coli attorney said in a statement. 

Previous lawsuits were amended to include Taylor Farms as being linked to salads catered at Rockwood Summit and Oakville high schools. Marler Clark attorneys say the salads sickened more than 50 people.

St. Louis County health officials reported more than 100 people were sickened during the outbreak, but not all had genetic testing to trace the strain.

The CDC and FDA closed federal investigations on the outbreak in January. The confirmed vehicle of E. coli was romaine lettuce, but the federal investigation does not link Taylor Farms to the outbreak. 

“If the FDA lacked sufficient scientific evidence to publicly identify a farm or firm, it would make sense for them not to name a company,” said Frank Yannis, a former FDA official in a statement provided by Taylor Farms. 

In a statement to Spectrum News, Taylor Farms said the strain linked to the outbreak isn’t caused by produce, but livestock. 

“Taylor Farms product WAS NOT the source of the referenced 2024 E. Coli outbreak,” a spokesperson for Taylor Farms said in a statement. “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 affected families.”

Marler Clark attorneys say the federal investigation was affected by federal layoffs, preventing Taylor Farms from being named as the source.

"It is disappointing, but with 20,000 employees at Health and Human Services (HHS) being fired, investigating, and reporting on outbreaks and alerting the public to the cause is clearly not a priority for this administration," Marler said in a statement. "If the gutted CDC and FDA can no longer do the job, we will step up... Had the CDC and FDA been allowed to do their jobs they would have publicized the same conclusion."