McDonald’s is committing $100 million to encourage customers to return to its stores following an E. coli food poisoning outbreak linked to slivered onions used in its Quarter Pounder hamburgers.
According to federal health officials, the outbreak resulted in at least 104 individuals becoming sick and 34 requiring hospitalization. Notably, one person died in Colorado, and four others developed a potentially life-threatening kidney disease complication. The reported cases were from several states, including at least 30 in Colorado, 19 in Montana, 13 in Nebraska, and 10 in New Mexico, with illnesses recorded between September 12 and October 21.
In response to the outbreak, which hurt the company’s sales, Quarter Pounders were temporarily removed from menus in several states. McDonald’s quickly found an alternate supplier to supply slivered onions for the 900 locations that had stopped serving the burgers. As a result, McDonald’s has recently resumed selling Quarter Pounders with slivered onions across the nation.
Although the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated that the slivered onions on the Quarter Pounders were likely the source of the E. coli outbreak, the Food and Drug Administration has stated that “there does not appear to be a continued food safety concern related to this outbreak at McDonald’s restaurants.” This assurance aims to rebuild customer confidence.
As part of its recovery plan, McDonald’s has allocated $65 million directly to franchises that were most affected by the outbreak, reinforcing its dedication to supporting its business partners during this challenging time.
