MONDAY, Jan. 13, 2025 (HealthDay News) — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials have uncovered dozens of violations at a McDonald’s supplier tied to last year’s deadly E.coli outbreak, which sickened over 100 people and led to a massive recall of onions used in the fast-food giant’s signature Quarter Pounder burgers.
The violations were listed in an FDA inspection report of Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility, obtained by CBS News through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Inspectors discovered multiple food safety issues, including equipment with biofilm and food debris, incomplete sanitation procedures, and improper handling of ready-to-eat (RTE) produce.
“Production employees handling RTE produce and food contact surfaces were not observed using any of the handwashing sinks in the facility,” the FDA’s inspectors wrote.
The inspection led the FDA to issue Taylor Farms a Form 483, citing conditions inspectors deemed “injurious to health.”
These findings included employees skipping required handwashing steps and failing to dry sanitized utensils, potentially contaminating produce with hazardous cleaning chemicals. The inspectors also flagged chemical mixtures used for sanitation that exceeded maximum concentrations or lacked proper documentation for safe use.
Taylor Farms, which labels its products as “prep-less kitchen solutions” for different restaurants, supplied onions to McDonald’s locations across multiple states before the outbreak. Following the investigation, the company recalled thousands of cases of ready-to-eat onions distributed to food service facilities in six different states.
In a company statement, Taylor Farms said it “immediately took steps to address” the FDA’s observations and noted that the inspection did not result in administrative or regulatory actions.
“This is consistent with the fact that no illnesses or public health threat has been linked to these observations,” the company added.
McDonald’s, which had already stopped sourcing from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility before the inspection, reiterated its commitment to food safety. “We hold our suppliers to the highest expectations and standards of food safety,” the company said in a news release.
“Prior to this inspection, and unrelated to its findings, McDonald’s stopped sourcing from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility.”
In total, 104 people from 14 states were sickened and 34 were hospitalized during the outbreak, while one older person in Colorado died, the FDA said in a previous health update. The likely source of contamination was determined to be raw, slivered onions that were put on the signature burgers.
While the evidence on what triggered the outbreak was slim, one sample from now-recalled onions supplied by Taylor Farms tested positive for E. coli. However, those samples did not match the strain found in those who fell ill, the FDA noted.
Still, investigators said they determined the yellow onions were the likely culprit based on interviews with those who were sickened and from information provided by the distributors of the product. Of the people who recalled what they ate, roughly 84 percent had a menu item with slivered onions, the agency said.
At that point, McDonald’s said it would stop using Taylor Farms onions from its Colorado Springs facility.
“The process to reach this point has at times felt long, challenging and uncertain,” Michael Gonda, McDonald’s North America chief impact officer, and Cesar Piña, the company’s chief supply chain officer, said in a previous statement. “But it is critical that public officials examine every possible angle, and we are deeply grateful that they moved quickly to identify and, in partnership with McDonald’s, contain the issue.”
The company said recently that it has resumed selling Quarter Pounders with slivered onions from different sources at affected locations.
“McDonald’s identified an alternate supplier for the approximately 900 restaurants that had temporarily stopped serving Quarter Pounder burgers with slivered onions,” the company said in a Nov. 14 statement. “Over the past week, these restaurants resumed the sale of Quarter Pounder burgers with slivered onions.”
In its statement, McDonald’s added that “food safety is something we will never compromise on, and we remain committed to doing the right thing.”
Still, several lawsuits have been filed against McDonald’s since the outbreak was first announced, including a proposed class action lawsuit, NBC News reported.
Most people infected with the E. coli strain recover without treatment. Milder symptoms often include stomach cramps, bloody diarrhea and vomiting. In more severe cases, people can develop high blood pressure, kidney disease, neurological problems or hemolytic uremic syndrome — a condition that can trigger kidney failure, according to the CDC.
More information
The CDC has more on E. coli.
SOURCES: CBS News, news release; U.S. Food and Drug Administration, health update, Dec. 4 and Nov. 13, 2024; McDonald’s statement, Dec. 4 and Nov. 13, 2024; NBC News
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