2024 McDonald's E. coli outbreak
| 2024 McDonald's E. coli outbreak | |
|---|---|
| Bacteria strain | Escherichia coli O157:H7 |
| Source | Silvered onions used on Quarter Pounders at McDonald's restaurants |
| Location | United States |
| First reported | October 22, 2024 |
| Date | September 27, 2024 – ongoing |
| Confirmed cases | 90 |
| Hospitalized cases | 27 |
Deaths | 1 |
The 2024 McDonald's E. coli outbreak is an ongoing outbreak involving contaminated slivered onions on Quarter Pounders sold at McDonald's stores in 13 U.S. states. At least 90 people have contracted Escherichia coli and one person has died.[1]
Outbreak
[edit]The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public warning through its Coordinated Outbreak Response & Evaluation Network (CORE Network) about the E. coli outbreak on October 22. Their initial investigation noted 49 cases of E. coli throughout 10 U.S. states (Colorado, Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, and portions of Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oklahoma). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has not confirmed the origin, but it is suspected to be either slivered onions or beef patties.[2][3] An update to the investigation was published on October 25 with 26 new cases, 12 new hospitalizations, and 3 new U.S. states (Oregon, Washington, and Utah).[4]
On October 22, McDonald's stores in the affected states either temporarily removed the Quarter Pounder from the menu or stopped serving it with the specific slivered onions and beef patties.[2][5] The Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) laboratories analyzed subsamples from all the lots of McDonald's brand fresh and frozen beef patties collected from various McDonald's locations in Colorado and found them to be negative for E. coli.
On October 23, a man, who fell ill after eating a sandwich at the fast food chain's Greeley, Colorado location, has filed a lawsuit against McDonald's over an E. coli outbreak linked to its Quarter Pounder burgers. The lawsuit is one of the first in the case.[6]
A second update on the investigation was published on October 30, stating that epidemiologic and traceback information shows that fresh, slivered onions are the likely source of illness in this outbreak.[2] The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) performed a traceback of beef patties served on Quarter Pounders at McDonald's, and evidence did not point to ground beef as the likely source of contamination.[2] The Food and Drug Administration is looking into a Washington onion "grower of interest".[7]
As of October 30, the outbreak affected Colorado, Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington and Michigan.[8]
Infection
[edit]Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a serotype of the bacterial species Escherichia coli and is one of the Shiga-like toxin–producing types of E. coli. It is a cause of disease, typically foodborne illness, through consumption of contaminated and raw food, including raw milk and undercooked ground beef.[9][10]
Responses
[edit]Two days after the reports, restaurant chains Burger King, Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut removed onions from their products in select locations.[11]
On October 25, Taylor Farms, the supplier of the slivered onions to the affected stores, initiated a voluntary recall on yellow onions.[4][5]
References
[edit]- ^ Harter, Clara (October 31, 2024). "There are now 90 victims in McDonald's E. coli outbreak; lawsuits begin to roll in". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
- ^ a b c d "E. coli Outbreak Linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounders". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). October 22, 2024. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
- ^ "Outbreak Investigation of E. coli O157:H7: McDonald's Quarter Pounders (October 2024)". Food and Drug Administration (FDA). October 22, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2024.
- ^ a b "Investigation Update: E. coli Outbreak, McDonald's Quarter Pounders - October 22, 2024". CDC. October 25, 2024. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
- ^ a b "Sobe para 75 número de contaminados por E.coli em McDonald's dos EUA; uma pessoa morreu". G1 (in Portuguese). October 25, 2024. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
- ^ "McDonald's é processado por homem que adoeceu com surto de E. coli nos EUA". G1 (in Portuguese). October 24, 2024. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
- ^ Edwards, Erika; Lovelace Jr., Berkeley (October 30, 2024). "CDC says slivered onions probably caused McDonald's E. coli infections as cases rise to 90". NBC News. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
- ^ Rajesh, Ananya Mariam (October 31, 2024). "Onions were likely source of McDonald's E. coli outbreak, US CDC says". Reuters. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
- ^ Gally DL, Stevens MP (January 2017). "Microbe Profile: Escherichia coli O157:H7 - notorious relative of the microbiologist's workhorse" (PDF). Microbiology. 163 (1): 1–3. doi:10.1099/mic.0.000387. PMID 28218576.
- ^ Karch H, Tarr PI, Bielaszewska M (October 2005). "Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli in human medicine". International Journal of Medical Microbiology. 295 (6–7): 405–18. doi:10.1016/j.ijmm.2005.06.009. PMID 16238016.
- ^ Brockington, Ariana (October 25, 2024). "Burger King, Taco Bell, KFC and others pull onions after McDonald's E. coli outbreak". NBC News. Retrieved October 25, 2024.