By JONEL ALECCIA and DEE-ANN DURBIN
A California-based produce company was the source of fresh onions linked to a deadly E. coli food poisoning outbreak at McDonald’s, officials with the restaurant chain said Thursday. Meanwhile, other fast-food restaurants — including Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC and Burger King — pulled onions from some menus.
McDonald’s officials said that Taylor Farms, of Salinas, California, sent onions to one distribution facility, which led the fast-food chain to remove Quarter Pounder hamburgers from restaurants in several states. McDonald’s didn’t say which facility it was.
MAP: Where has the E. coli outbreak been linked to McDonald’s?
An outbreak tied to the burgers has sickened at least 49 people in 10 states, including a person who died, federal health officials have said. Investigators said they were focused on slivered onions as a potential source of the infections.
U.S. Foods, a major wholesaler to restaurants across the country, said Thursday that Taylor Farms had issued a recall this week for peeled whole and diced yellow onions for potential E. coli contamination. The recalled onions came from a Taylor Farms facility in Colorado, a U.S. Foods spokesperson said. But the wholesaler also noted that it wasn’t a McDonald’s supplier and that its recall didn’t include any products sold at the fast-food chain’s restaurants.
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Taylor Farms did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration did not confirm that the agency is investigating Taylor Farms. A spokesperson said Thursday that the agency is “looking at all sources” of the outbreak.
In the meantime, other national restaurant chains temporarily stopped using fresh onions.
“As we continue to monitor the recently reported E. coli outbreak, and out of an abundance of caution, we have proactively removed fresh onions from select Taco…
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