McDonald's supplier Taylor Farms subject of separate onion recall after E. coli outbreak
McDonald's removed Quarter Pounders from some restaurants because onions may be linked to an E. coli outbreak. Now, a supplier recalled yellow onions for contamination risk.
After McDonald's pulled Quarter Pounders, which are served with raw onions, from menus in many of its restaurants earlier this week for potential E. coli contamination risk, raw onions have become the source of another food safety recall.
US Foods, one of the nation's largest distributors to restaurants and other food service businesses, has issued a recall on raw diced, peeled, and whole peeled onions from its third-party supplier Taylor Farms Colorado. "The reason for the recall is due to potential E. coli contamination," reads the recall, first reported on by ABC News.
One of Taylor Farms' production facilities also supplied onions to McDonald's in the areas impacted by E. coli illnesses, McDonald's told Paste BN on Thursday.
However, the recalled Taylor Farms Colorado onions were not related to the company's removal of Quarter Pounders, the company said.
US Foods, which distributed the recalled Taylor Farms Colorado yellow onions, is not a supplier to McDonald's, the fast food chain said. US Foods also told Paste BN in a statement that the company "is not a distributor of record for McDonald’s restaurants and McDonald’s restaurants are not included in the recall notifications issued by US Foods about the Taylor Farms Colorado onion products recall."
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The Wall Street Journal previously reported that Taylor Farms supplied onions to McDonald's locations impacted by the outbreak. The company told the Journal that in cooperating with federal regulators it removed from the market yellow onions produced at its Colorado facility.
Taylor Farms did not immediately reply to request for comment from Paste BN.
What to know about the E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounders
The restaurant chain said Wednesday it had taken the Quarter Pounder off the menu in one-fifth of its restaurants after 49 people reported getting sick across 10 states in an E. coli outbreak linked to the sandwiches, according to the Food and Drug Administration. One person in Colorado died.
Federal safety regulators' investigation into the E. coli outbreak has focused on the beef patty or slivered onion served on the sandwich as the likely source. Diced onions − a different type of onion than slivered − that are served on McDonald's cheeseburgers and hamburgers are not recalled, the company said.
The FDA told Paste BN there was no new information on the McDonald's Quarter Pounder investigation but that the agency hasn't linked the outbreak to Taylor Farms. "We’re still looking at all possible sources," spokesperson Janell Goodwin said.
Why are onions the suspected culprit in McDonald's E. coli outbreak?
McDonald's has stringent cooking standards and tests the heat of the Quarter Pounder patties so they hit 175 degrees. Should there be any E. coli bacteria in the patty, it would be killed at 160 degrees, the company said.
But the burgers are usually topped with slivered onions, the company said. "Early information from FDA indicates onions may be a source of this outbreak," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday.
That makes onions the likely culprit, food safety lawyer Bill Marler told Paste BN on Wednesday. "It would be unusual to have undercooking happen in 10 different states, so it's probably a good bet it is the onion supplier, but there's still risk of cross contamination within the restaurants," he said.
FDA update on onions and E. coli investigation
The FDA is "using all available tools to confirm if onions are the source of this outbreak," Goodwin said in an update late Thursday. "This includes working with federal and state partners and the companies involved to collect and evaluate records and distribution information as part of our traceback investigation. FDA and state partners are also collecting onion samples for analysis."
About the Taylor Farms' voluntary recall, she said, "the FDA can confirm that yellow onions were sold to additional food service customers. Customers who received recalled onions have been directly notified of the recall."
This story has been updated to include new information.
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