The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported that the number of E. coli cases linked to McDonald’s Quarter Pounders has risen to 90, with one person dead and 27 hospitalized. The outbreak is believed to have originated from slivered onions used on the burgers. McDonald’s has taken action by pulling all Quarter Pounders in affected states from their restaurants and stated that any further risk to the public is low. The Colorado Agriculture Department has ruled out the beef patties as the source of the outbreak. One family in Grand Junction, Colorado, shared their daughter’s experience with the illness, which resulted in kidney damage and multiple rounds of dialysis. Thirteen states have reported cases linked to the Quarter Pounders, with the FDA investigating Taylor Farms Colorado Springs as the likely source of contamination. McDonald’s has stopped sourcing onions from the company and will begin selling Quarter Pounders without onions in affected stores. Other restaurant chains in Colorado have also removed onions from their menus as a precaution. There have been no reported cases of E. coli linked to these other restaurants.
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