OTHER NEWS - Jan. 21, 1993

Fast-Food Chain Boosts Cooking Time After Poisonings: Jack in the Box restaurants in Washington state have increased the cooking time for their hamburgers after a wave of food poisoning cases linked to undercooked meat at the fast-food chain, state officials said. Supermarket chain Vons Cos. of Arcadia processed the hamburger meat for Jack in the Box, which is operated by San Diego-based Foodmaker Inc. Officials linked 25 more cases of food poisoning caused by a strain of E. coli to Jack in the Box restaurants in Washington, bringing to 75 the total number of cases there. San Diego County has recorded four cases of E . coli infection in which patients had a history of eating at fast-food restaurants. A Washington health official said his office has received notification of two more cases in Boise, Ida.