Is it safe to order a quarter pounder at McDonald’s during the E. coli outbreak? This is what the health authorities say

McDonald’s, the world’s best-known hamburger chain, has been embroiled in a major controversy in recent days. A outbreak of the dangerous E. coli bacteria linked to the Quarter Pounder has so far sickened at least 75 people in 13 different states. Twenty-two of them have been hospitalized, and one person has died in Colorado.

Although McDonald’s initially stopped selling the Quarter Pounder in hundreds of restaurants, the chain is still in business today has announced that it will resume sales of the product this week. But is it safe to order?

E. COLI OUTBREAK: CDC is investigating 49 illnesses in 10 states linked to McDonald’s Quarter Pounder burgers. If you ate a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburger and have severe symptoms of E. coli, call your healthcare provider. pic.twitter.com/gHzUKCnTi9

— CDC (@CDCgov) October 22, 2024

Why is McDonald’s selling the Quarter Pounder again?

The company announced this in a statement on Sunday the Quarter Pounder will again be available for purchase in approximately 900 restaurants where it had previously been removed. This decision was made after testing ruled out beef patties as a source of the outbreakMcDonald’s said.

“The Department of Agriculture has received multiple shipments of fresh and frozen beef patties collected from several Colorado McDonald’s locations involved in the E. coli investigation. All samples were found to be negative for E. coli,” the company said in a statement.

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What is the source of the E. coli outbreak?

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) believes that chopped onions are the likely source of contamination. These onions are supplied entirely by one supplier, Taylor Farms, specifically from the Colorado Springs facility. McDonald’s has removed all onions from this facility and has decided to stop using it indefinitely.

“The 900 McDonald’s restaurants that normally receive sliced ​​onions from the Taylor Farms facility in Colorado Springs will resume selling Quarter Pounders without sliced ​​onions,” the company said.

That said, it remains unclear whether the recalled onions were the source of the outbreak. The FDA is still investigating whether Taylor Farms’ onions are responsible. The FDA and CDC say they continue to work with partners to investigate.

Is it Safe to Eat a Quarter Pounder at McDonald’s?

The head of the CDC’s Outbreak Response and Prevention DivisionMatt Wise said that while more cases may appear in the coming days, now that the contaminated chopped onions have been removed from the burgers, customers must be safe. “For someone walking into a McDonald’s today,” he said, “the risk is significantly lower.”

McDonald’s US President Joe Erlinger apologized to customers in a video on the company’s YouTube channel. “On behalf of the McDonald’s system, I want you to hear from me: we are sorry,” he said.

How dangerous is E. coli? Here are the symptoms.

E.coli is found in many places and is for the most part harmless, but like other bacteria certain types can make you sick with diarrhea, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, sepsis and other illnesses According to the CDC. E. coli occurs in the environment, on food and in water, but also in the intestines of people and animals.

In reality, most of them living in our intestinal tract help keep the system healthydigest food so that we can extract the nutrients from it and produce vitamins. She too protect us from other harmful germs.

We can become infected with E. coli after swallowing the germ in contaminated water or on foodor touching animals, environments or other people and then bringing the bacteria to our mouth. Protecting ourselves is therefore relatively simple. “The best ways to prevent infection are to keep your hands clean, prepare food safely and drink safe water,” advises the CDC.

According to the CDC, E. Coli can cause dehydration, vomiting, bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps, and in worst cases can be fatal.

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*This article was written in Spanish and translated using AI.