McDonald’s supplier recalls onions linked to deadly E. coli outbreak
A McDonald’s supplier recalled yellow onions produced in a Colorado plant in response to the deadly E. coli outbreak at the fast food chain
Taylor Farms, which supplies onions to McDonald’s franchises that are the subject of a multi-state investigation by health authorities, said it was pulling products “out of an abundance of caution” and that it did not find traces of E. coli.
The Food and Drug Administration has pointed to Taylor Farms onions as “a likely source of contamination” and has launched an investigation into the supplier, CNBC reported Thursday.
The FDA, however, said that they were still looking at all possible sources, adding that the investigation was ongoing.
The Post has sought comment from Taylor Farms and McDonald’s.
“Taylor Farms Colorado removed yellow onions from the market produced out of our Colorado facility. We continue to work closely with FDA and CDC during this ongoing investigation,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.
McDonald’s on Tuesday pulled its Quarter Pounders off the menu from one-fifth of its locations after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that E. coli linked to the burger led to one person dying and dozens of others being hospitalized.
“We fully expect to see more cases,” said CDC spokesman Tom Skinner.
“McDonald’s has moved rather quickly to take action to, hopefully, prevent as many cases as possible.”
A Colorado man has filed what appears to be the first lawsuit against McDonald’s over the E. coli outbreak. Eric Stelly alleged in a court filing submitted in Cook County, Ill. that he purchased food from a Greeley, Col., McDonald’s franchise on Oct. 4. Two days later, he said he began experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, stomach cramps and bloody stools.
On Oct. 8, he rushed to the emergency room, where medical staff confirmed through tests that he was poisoned with E. coli, according to his attorney.
Colorado has had the most reported cases out of the 50 incidents across the West and Midwest, and it’s where the one death involving an older adult occurred.
The FDA launched a preliminary investigation which found that fresh slivered onions that are served raw on Quarter Pounder hamburgers were a likely source of the contamination.
McDonald’s also serves raw, slivered onions on one of its breakfast sandwiches, but that sandwich isn’t available at the impacted stores. Other burgers, like the Big Mac, use diced, cooked onions.
McDonald’s said it was searching for a new regional supplier for fresh onions.
In the meantime, Quarter Pounders were removed from menus in Colorado, Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, and portions of Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.
Infections were reported between Sept. 27 and Oct. 11 in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
State and local public health officials were interviewing people about the foods they ate in the week before they got sick.
Of the 18 people interviewed as of Tuesday, all reported eating at McDonald’s, and 16 people reported eating a hamburger. Twelve reported eating a Quarter Pounder.
McDonald’s said it has worked closely with federal food safety regulators since late last week, when it was alerted to the potential outbreak.
The company said the scope of the problem and the popularity of its products have complicated efforts to identify the contamination source.
McDonald’s has more than 14,000 US stores and serves 1 million Quarter Pounders every two weeks in the affected 12-state area.
Meanwhile, Yum Brands said on Thursday it would be removing fresh onions from its meals at certain Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC restaurants out of an “abundance of caution.”
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