Testing rules out beef patties as the source of E. coli outbreak, McDonald’s says
LOS ANGELES — Testing has beef patties excluded as a source of outbreak of E. coli poisoning affiliated with McDonald’s Quarter Pounders, the company said Sunday. Sales of the Quarter Pounder will resume at hundreds of affected restaurants next week.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to believe that chopped onions from a single supplier are the likely source of contamination, McDonald’s said in a statement.
By Friday, the outbreak had expanded to at least 75 sick people in 13 states, federal health officials said. A total of 22 people are now hospitalized, and two have developed a dangerous complication of kidney disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One person has died in Colorado.
Early information analyzed by the FDA showed that uncooked chopped onions used on the burgers “are a likely source of contamination,” the agency said. McDonald’s has confirmed this that Taylor Farms, a California-based produce company, was the supplier of the fresh onions used in the restaurants involved in the outbreak, and that they came from a facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
McDonald’s pulled the Quarter Pounder burger from menus in several states — mainly the Midwest and Mountain states — when the outbreak was announced Tuesday. McDonald’s said Friday that sliced onions from its Colorado Springs factory have been distributed to about 900 of its restaurants, including some in transportation hubs such as airports.
The company said it removed the cut onions from the factory from its supply chain on Tuesday. McDonald’s said it has decided to stop sourcing onions from the Taylor Farms plant in Colorado Springs “indefinitely.”
The 900 McDonald’s restaurants that normally receive sliced onions from the Taylor Farms plant in Colorado Springs will resume selling Quarter Pounders without sliced onions, McDonald’s said.
Taylor Farms said Friday it has preemptively recalled yellow onions sent from its Colorado factory to its customers and continues to cooperate with the CDC and FDA as they investigate.
While it remains unclear whether the recalled onions were the source of the outbreak, several other fast-food restaurants — including Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC and Burger King — have removed onions from some menus in certain areas this week.
The outbreak involves infections with E. coli 0157:H7, a type of bacteria that produces a dangerous poison. It causes about 74,000 infections in the U.S. annually, leading to more than 2,000 hospitalizations and 61 deaths annually, according to CDC.
Symptoms of E. coli poisoning can occur quickly, within a day or two of eating contaminated food. They usually include fever, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea and signs of dehydration – little or no urination, increased thirst and dizziness. The infection is especially dangerous for children under 5 years old, the elderly, pregnant people or people with a weakened immune system.
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Associated Press writer JoNel Aleccia reported from Temecula, California.