Following testing from the Colorado Agriculture Department, McDonald’s is once again selling its Quarter Pounders after the beef patties were ruled out as the source of the outbreak of E. coli poisoning.
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Last week, the US Food and Drug Administration named the Quarter Pounder’s beef patties as the possible cause for the outbreak, which has killed one person and left at least 75 others ill in 13 states, health officials shared. However, thanks to testing, the FDA is now pointing to slivered onions from a single supplier as the likely source of contamination, McDonald’s said in a statement.
Starting in the coming week, McDonald’s will once again start selling its iconic burger after putting them on the shelf in several Midwest and Mountain states while testing was completed.
The FDA reported that information collected by the agency shows the uncooked slivered onions used on the burgers “are a likely source of contamination.”
The restaurant chain confirmed that Taylor Farms supplied the fresh onions used in the restaurants involved in the outbreak. The onions were also found to have come from a facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
McDonald’s said the possibly contaminated onions were distributed to around 900 of its restaurants, including some airport locations.
The company also shared that it will stop sourcing onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility “indefinitely.” The affected restaurants starting to sell the burgers again will do so without onions, McDonald’s said.
Taylor Farms announced last week that it was preemptively recalling yellow onions sent to customers from its Colorado facility. It is also continuing to work with the CDC and FDA as they investigate.
The outbreak involves infections with E. coli 0157:H7, a bacteria type that produces a dangerous toxin and is responsible for around 74,000 infections in the US every year. Those infections cause more than 2,000 hospitalizations and 61 deaths every year, the CDC reported.
Symptoms of E. coli poisoning include fever, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, and dehydration. Symptoms can start within a day or two of eating food that is contaminated. Those who are pregnant, elderly, or have weakened immune systems are the most at risk from infections.
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