After a study excluding its beef patties as the cause of an E. coli outbreak, McDonald’s is now starting sales of its well-liked Quarter Pounder burgers across all US outlets. The outbreak tragically resulted in at least one fatality and left scores of people sick, so the fast-food behemoth stopped selling the burger in about 20% of its US outlets as a precaution.
Tests on McDonald’s beef patties carried out by the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) turned out to be harmful to germs. McDonald’s declared its intentions to bring the Quarter Pounder back across the country after the source of contamination was ruled out from the patties.
McDonald’s North America’s Chief supply chain Officer claimed in a statement, “The issue seems to be contained to a particular ingredient and geography.” “We remain quite confident that any contaminated product linked to this outbreak has been eliminated from our supply chain.”
Is Slivered Onions the Potential Source Identified by the FDA?
Earlier, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that slivered onions used in Quarter Pounders possibly caused the E. coli incident. McDonald’s responded quickly, severed links with the onion supplier, and eliminated all associated products from its inventory line.
McDonald’s said in a company statement, “The 900 restaurants that historically received slivered onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility will resume sales of Quarter Pounders without slivered onions.”
Customers who fell sick are now suing McDonald’s, which complicates matters for the fast-food behemoth even as it strives to rebuild public confidence.
What health advisory did the CDC send to consumers of quarter pounders?
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued health advice asking anyone who ate a Quarter Pounder and later experienced symptoms, including diarrhea, fever, and vomiting, to seek medical assistance despite the continuous legal challenges. Health authorities claim that symptoms can appear four days after contaminated food intake.
The CDC said most people will recover on their own in five to seven days. Still, some situations may require hospital treatment.
How have finances and stock prices fared?
Since the CDC’s first announcement, McDonald’s shares have declined more than 7.5% in response to the outbreak. This is a difficult era for the fast-food business, which earlier saw an unexpected worldwide sales loss in July—its first quarterly drop in over three years.
Aiming to keep lower-income consumers despite increasing inflation, fast-food companies like McDonald’s and Burger King have been emphasizing more appealing value meals. McDonald’s is under pressure to not only rebuild consumer confidence but also stabilize its performance in a market that is becoming increasingly competitive, given the financial consequences of the epidemic and changing legal environment.
The latest failure underlines the difficulties fast-food businesses have keeping quality and cost while negotiating public health issues.
