Unlicensed Shared Kitchen Prepared E. coli-Riddled Meatloaf to Daycare Centers: Authorities 

Several Canadian daycares fell victim to an E. coli breakout suspected to have derived from a shared kitchen that was operating without a proper license, the City of Calgary announced Wednesday. 

Four children remain hospitalized and a handful of children connected to the outbreak developed hemolytic uremic syndrome —  a disease that affects the kidneys.

Initially, there were 96 infections and 22 hospitalizations as a result of the outbreak, The Messenger previously reported.

The chief medical officer of Alberta, a Canadian province, said health investigators pinpointed the cause of the outbreak, CBC reported. 

The culprit: meatloaf. 

The revelation came after an outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli which produced over 350 lab-confirmed cases and 37 secondary cases of the bacteria, Alberta's Chief Medical Officer of Health Mark Joffe, said in a news conference. 

Joffe said investigators maintain that the meal has "extremely high odds" of being the outbreak's source. 

"Based on our investigation, we believe that meatloaf and vegan loaf meals that were served for lunch on Aug. 29 most likely contain the E. coli bacteria that led to these infections," he said at the press conference. 

Though the chances of the meatloaf causing the bacterial outbreak are high, Joffe said the food could not be tested as it was already consumed or thrown away before investigators could get to it. 

"Unfortunately, neither of these items could be tested as they were either eaten or discarded before this outbreak was identified,” he said. 

Nineteen daycares were affected by the outbreak, according to city officials. Out of those, 11 were linked to the original outbreak, and secondary spread was found at the remaining eight daycares. 

Following the investigation, the city pressed charges against Fueling Minds — the catering company that provided food to various daycares throughout the city. The company and its two directors have reportedly been charged under the Business Licensing Bylaw for operating without a business license — for a total of 12 charges. 

If the parties are convicted, they could face a total fine of up to $120,000. 

John Greenhow, a parent of one of the children who attended one of Fueling Brains daycare locations, said his son contracted E. coli and later developed hemolytic uremic syndrome. 

He told CBC he has to take his child to nephrology appointments to monitor his kidney functions. 

"The danger for my son and for other children who are affected by HUS is that this will be something they deal with potentially for the rest of their lifetime — if their kidneys were damaged significantly enough," he told the news outlet.