McDonald’s tests show E. coli outbreak not linked to beef patties

McDonald’s on Sunday said that beef patties were not the source of E. Coli outbreak linked to Quarter Pounder hamburgers in the US. 

McDonald’s Chief Supply Chain Officer Cesar Pina said in a statement:

We remain very confident that any contaminated product related to this outbreak has been removed from our supply chain and is out of all McDonald’s restaurants.

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) linked the company’s popular Quarter Pounder burgers to an E. coli outbreak affecting several US states.

The CDC had since then confirmed that the outbreak had resulted in one death and 10 hospitalizations, with most illnesses confined in Colorado and Nebraska in the US. The outbreak has also sickened 75 persons in the US.

Tests show negative results

The Colorado Department of Agriculture said that all subsamples from multiple lots of McDonald’s brand fresh and frozen beef patties had tested negative for E. coli. 

The department further said that it had completed all the testing for beef samples and does not expect to receive any further samples for testing. 

McDonald’s announced on Sunday that the Quarter Pounder hamburgers will be back on the menu in all restaurants in the coming week, according to the statement. 

According to reports, E. coli is eliminated in beef when cooked properly. According to Reuters, The McDonald’s Quarter Pounder is served with raw, slivered onions; affected restaurants will serve the burgers without such onions.

Quarter Pounders won’t have onions

McDonald’s, however, said in a statement that the Quarter Pounder hamburgers will not have the raw slivered onions. 

Federal regulators in the US have said that slivered onions could be the likely culprit behind the E. coli outbreak. 

According to the New York Times, Colorado health officials tested beef samples from the two beef suppliers that provided patties to the 900 affected locations in a dozen states. 

As for the slivered onions, McDonald’s said Friday it would stop buying onions from the Colorado Springs site of its major regional supplier Taylor Farms, a multistate producer of vegetables and fruits, according to the New York Times report. 

Several other fast-food chains, including Taco Bell, KFC and Burger King have stopped offering onions on their respective menus as a precautionary measure. 

Removal of onions to lower risks

US health officials have reportedly said that the removal of onion items from the region’s food supply chain would lower the risk to consumers. 

Among the 75 people who became ill, at least one-quarter were hospitalized, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Two developed a serious kidney condition associated with E. coli, the agency said. The illness was reported between September 27 and October 10.

A McDonald’s spokesperson said that the number of people affected by the E. coli outbreak would rise as more information is processed, according to media reports. 

However, the spokesperson said that they were “very confident” that the source of contamination had been removed from the supply chain. 

Since last Tuesday when CDC announced the outbreak, shares of McDonald’s have dropped nearly 7%. 

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