CDC confirms onions caused McDonald's E. coli outbreak
The CDC says the current risk to the public is "very low" due to the actions take by McDonald's and Taylor Farms to remove fresh yellow slivered onions from McDonald's restaurants.
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday reported there is "very low" risk to the public after an outbreak of E. coli affected 90 people in 13 states after eating McDonald's Quarter Pounders containing yellow slivered onions. (Photo by Cristobal Herrera-Ulashkevich/EPA-EFE.)
Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Slivered onions served on McDonald's Quarter Pounders and other menu items caused a recent E. coli outbreak, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday.
The CDC began investigating the E. coli outbreak on Oct. 22 and identified 90 cases that caused one death and 27 hospitalizations in 13 states.
The CDC says the current risk to the public is "very low" due to the actions take by McDonald's and Taylor Farms to remove fresh yellow slivered onions from McDonald's restaurants and other food services operators that also used the onions from Taylor Farms.
The CDC identified between 16 and 29 cases in Colorado and Montana and between six and 15 cases in Utah, Nebraska and Missouri.
Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, New Mexico, Wyoming, Oregon and Washington each had between one and five cases.
No new cases have occurred since McDonald's and supplier Taylor Farms recalled the slivered onions.
The Colorado Department of Agriculture on Oct. 22 received multiple lots of fresh and frozen beef patties from McDonald's locations in the state that were associated with the E. coli outbreak.
The CDA Microbiology Laboratory analyzed the beef, which tested negative for E. coli. The CDA says it does not expect to receive more samples.
The CDA did not test McDonald's onions and said there is no evidence showing Colorado-grown onions are linked to the outbreak.
E. coli is a group of bacteria that can cause infections in people's stomachs, urinary tract and other parts of the body, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
E. coli usually won't cause harm, but some strains can make people ill and experience watery diarrhea, vomiting and fever.
The Shiga toxin-producing E. coli strain is the most likely to cause severe illness.
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