LOS ANGELES—McDonald’s announced Sunday that it will put the Quarter Pounder back on the menu at hundreds of locations after tests ruled out the beef patty being the source of the disease. coli poisoning In conjunction with the popular hamburger, One person has died and at least 75 people have become ill in 13 states..
McDonald’s said in a statement that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to believe that sliced onions from a single supplier were the likely source of the contamination. The company announced it will resume selling Quarter Pounders without the julienned onions in affected restaurants next week.
As of Friday, the outbreak had sickened at least 75 people in 13 states, federal health officials said. A total of 22 people were hospitalized, two of whom developed dangerous kidney disease complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One person died in Colorado.
Early information analyzed by the FDA indicated that shredded raw onions used in the burgers were a “possible source of contamination,” the agency said. McDonald’s confirmed that Taylor Farms, a California-based produce company, was the supplier of the onions used in the restaurant involved in the outbreak, and that they were sourced from a facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Ta.
mcdonalds Quarter Pounder burger removed from menus in some states When the outbreak was announced Tuesday, it was primarily in the Midwest and mountain states. McDonald’s announced Friday that sliced onions from its Colorado Springs facility have been distributed to about 900 restaurants, including those in transportation hubs such as airports.
The company announced Tuesday that it had removed shredded onions sourced from the facility from its supply chain. McDonald’s announced that it has decided to suspend sourcing onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility “indefinitely.”
McDonald’s 900 stores that normally received shredded onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility will resume selling Quarter Pounders without the shredded onions, McDonald’s said.
tested by The Colorado Department of Agriculture denied the beef patty was the source. McDonald’s commented on the spread of infection as follows:
The Department of Agriculture received multiple lots of fresh and frozen beef patties collected from various McDonald’s stores in Colorado in connection with an E. coli investigation. All samples were found negative for E. coli, the department said.
Taylor Farms announced Friday that it preemptively recalled yellow onions sent to customers from its Colorado facility and continues to work with the CDC and FDA to investigate.
It remains unclear whether the recalled onions are the source of the outbreak, but some Other fast food restaurants such as Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Burger King have taken out onions. Some menus from this week’s specific areas.
As of Friday, Colorado had the most reported illnesses, with 26 cases. The CDC reports at least 13 cases in Montana, 11 in Nebraska, five each in New Mexico and Utah, four each in Missouri and Wyoming, two in Michigan, Iowa and Kansas. There was one case each in Washington, D.C., Oregon, Wisconsin and Washington state.
McDonald’s announced Friday that it did not stop serving Quarter Pounders from additional restaurants, noting that some of the cases in states outside of the original region are related to travel.
The CDC said some people who became ill reported traveling to other states before developing symptoms. At least three people said they ate at McDonald’s during their trip. The illness was reported between September 27th and October 11th.
The outbreak involves infection with E. coli 0157:H7, a type of bacteria that produces dangerous toxins. According to the CDC, the virus causes about 74,000 infections, more than 2,000 hospitalizations, and 61 deaths each year in the United States.
Symptoms of E. coli poisoning can appear quickly within 1 to 2 days after eating contaminated food. Usually includes fever, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, and signs of dehydration (little or no peeing, increased dry mouth, dizziness). This infection is especially dangerous for children under the age of 5, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems.