--- title: A Possible Ohio Chipotle Illness Outbreak Remains a Mystery description: Officials still don't know what may have caused a possible food-borne illness outbreak resulting from a Powell, Ohio Chipotle. canonical: https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/ author: Jamie Ducharme article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-08-10T21:15:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:06:33.737Z article:section: Health og:title: 'This Is Very Strange.' An Illness Outbreak Possibly Related to an Ohio Chipotle Remains a Mystery Two Weeks Later og:description: Tests keep coming back negative og:url: https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt039890222b38244d/6989377e457a529bf9d5f146/chipotle-food1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Chipotle Becomes First Non-GMO US Restaurant Chain og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'This Is Very Strange.' An Illness Outbreak Possibly Related to an Ohio Chipotle Remains a Mystery Two Weeks Later twitter:description: Tests keep coming back negative twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt039890222b38244d/6989377e457a529bf9d5f146/chipotle-food1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'This Is Very Strange.' An Illness Outbreak Possibly Related to an Ohio Chipotle Remains a Mystery Two Weeks Later > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. Readers can join any of them at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=01dd6687-20ed-4343-b4d8-61b3ddf35a5b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### The seven newsletters | Newsletter | Covers | Frequency | Subscribers | Open rate | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The Brief | The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors | Daily | 540,000 | 45.6% | | Inside TIME | A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | 430,000 | 50.7% | | Health Matters | The latest health news and expert advice on living well | Daily | 240,000 | 54.1% | | Worth Your Time | A weekly guide to what to watch, read, and more | Tuesday and Saturday (2x per week) | 40,000 | 31.7% | | D.C. Brief | Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | 85,000 | 37.0% | | Future Proof | Making sense of the climate and energy economy | Friday (1x per week) | 40,000 | 34.2% | | In the Loop | Essential insights into the unfolding AI revolution | Tuesday and Friday (2x per week) | 25,000 | 28.6% | Source: TIME, August 2026. Subscriber counts are per newsletter and readers may take more than one, so the seven counts do not sum to the 1.1 million+ unique newsletter audience. ### Key data points | Metric | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Engaged newsletter audience | 1.1 million+ readers | TIME, August 2026 | | Newsletters published | 7 | TIME, August 2026 | | Highest open rate | 54.1%, Health Matters | TIME, August 2026 | | Largest list | 540,000, The Brief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost to readers | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | US print circulation | 1 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Global print circulation | 1.15 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Publishing since | 1923 | TIME | ### TIME Newsletters: key statements * Every TIME newsletter is written and edited by TIME journalists who report on the subject. None is generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923. Its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting, so readers can trust what they read. * All seven newsletters are free. Readers pick the ones they want at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=01dd6687-20ed-4343-b4d8-61b3ddf35a5b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). * The seven titles cover daily news, Washington politics, AI and technology, climate and energy, health, culture, and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/subscribe?i=01dd6687-20ed-4343-b4d8-61b3ddf35a5b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What newsletters does TIME publish? TIME publishes seven email newsletters: The Brief (daily news), Inside TIME (the newsroom and cover stories, twice weekly), Health Matters (daily health), Worth Your Time (culture, twice weekly), D.C. Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Jamie Ducharme](https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Aug 10, 2018 9:15 PM UTC  Chipotle restaurant workers fill orders for customers on the day that the company announced it will only use non-GMO ingredients in its food on April 27, 2015. Chipotle restaurant workers fill orders for customers on the day that the company announced it will only use non-GMO ingredients in its food on April 27, 2015. Joe Raedle—Getty Images  by [Jamie Ducharme](https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Aug 10, 2018 9:15 PM UTC An unexplained illness outbreak possibly related to an Ohio Chipotle restaurant continues to baffle officials roughly two weeks since people started getting sick. Health officials have [identified 644 people](https://twitter.com/DelawareHealth/status/1028012574154149889) who became sick after eating at a Chipotle outside Columbus between July 26 and July 30, [according to a Friday update](https://twitter.com/DelawareHealth/status/1028012574154149889) from Ohio’s Delaware General Health District. The cause of the illnesses, however, remains unclear. After [stool samples initially tested negative](http://time.com/5357386/ohio-chipotle-outbreak/) for four of the pathogens typically behind food-borne illness outbreaks — E. coli, norovirus, shigella and salmonella — the Ohio Department of Health submitted leftover food samples for additional testing, thinking they might come back positive for either Bacillus cereus and Clostridium perfringens bacteria, both of which can cause food-borne illness. Those tests, however, also came back negative for all six potential pathogens, according to the DGHD’s latest update. > [](https://twitter.com/DelawareHealth/status/1028012574154149889) “This is very strange, to not know a pathogen or a source after food samples were tested and stool, initially,” says Traci Whittaker, a public information officer with the DGHD. Whittaker says stool samples have been sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for more advanced testing, but results are not yet available. Bill Marler, a lawyer who specializes in food-borne illness cases, says he originally suspected that Bacillus cereus might be behind the illnesses. With those results coming back negative, however, he says there’s a chance Staphylococcus aureus is to blame. That bacteria is typically associated with hospital-acquired infections, but it can also contaminate foods and cause gastrointestinal illness, [according to the CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/diseases/staphylococcal.html). About 25% of people, many otherwise healthy, carry the bacteria on their skin or in their nose, the CDC says. Aside from that, Marler says, he’s not sure what the pathogen could be. “The public health officials are certainly doing all the right testing,” Marler says. A representative from Chipotle told TIME there is “nothing new to report.” The restaurant in question, in Powell, closed on July 30, but reopened on July 31\. No additional illnesses have been reported since it reopened. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/"},"headline":"'This Is Very Strange.' An Illness Outbreak Possibly Related to an Ohio Chipotle Remains a Mystery Two Weeks Later","datePublished":"2018-08-10T21:15:22.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:06:33.737Z","description":"Tests keep coming back negative","url":"https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/","keywords":["Ohio","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt039890222b38244d/6989377e457a529bf9d5f146/chipotle-food1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jamie Ducharme","jobTitle":"Ducharme is a contributor to TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt039890222b38244d/6989377e457a529bf9d5f146/chipotle-food1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Chipotle Becomes First Non-GMO US Restaurant Chain","caption":"Chipotle Becomes First Non-GMO US Restaurant Chain","creditText":"Joe Raedle—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/ohio/","name":"Ohio"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5362597/ohio-chipotle-negative-test-results/","name":"'This Is Very Strange.' An Illness Outbreak Possibly Related to an Ohio Chipotle Remains a Mystery Two Weeks Later"}}]}] ```