CDC announces new cases connected to E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald's onions

DENVER (KDVR) — The Centers for Disease Control reported 15 new cases of E. coli Wednesday linked to an outbreak in fresh onions used on McDonald's Quarter Pounders, including two new cases in Colorado.

That brings the total number of infected individuals to 90, with 27 hospitalizations, up from 75 cases with 22 hospitalizations. The death of a Mesa County resident in their 80s with underlying health concerns remains the only fatality linked to this outbreak.

Additionally, two people have developed “hemolytic uremic syndrome,” which can be a complication of E. coli food poisoning. The Food and Drug Administration reported Wednesday that the Mesa County death was not due to HUS. 

HUS is a blood disorder characterized by kidney injury and low platelet counts, according to the Cleveland Clinic. One of the two people who have developed this disorder is a 15-year-old girl from Mesa County, who was life-flighted to Children's Hospital Colorado on Oct. 17 and placed on dialysis.

The outbreak also is still contained to 13 states, and the CDC said on Wednesday that due to the "product actions" taken by Taylor Farms, which appears to have been the onion supplier, and McDonald's, the risk to the public is "very low." The CDC said fresh, slivered onions served on Quarter Pounders and "other menu items from McDonald's" are the likely source of the outbreak.

On Wednesday, the FDA said it is inspecting Taylor Farms' processing center in Colorado and is also looking into "an onion grower of interest in Washington State." Taylor Farms recalled its yellow onions on Oct. 22 that were supplied to McDonald's and other food service customers, and McDonald's removed slivered onions from its menu in impacted states.

The FDA said that it's unlikely that the recalled onions were sold to grocery stores or directly to consumers, but food service customers who received recalled onions should not use them.

"More illnesses have been reported but they are from before McDonald’s and Taylor Farms took action to remove slivered onions from food service locations," the FDA reported on Wednesday.

Colorado has the highest number of cases, with 29 so far. Montana has the second-highest number of cases, 17, followed by Nebraska with 12. Cases have also been traced to Missouri, Utah, Wyoming, New Mexico, Michigan, Kansas, Iowa, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.

On Wednesday, the FDA said it had interviewed 62 people who all reported eating at McDonald's, with 48 people reporting eating a menu item containing fresh, slivered onions, and 46 reported eating a menu item made with quarter-pound beef patties.

According to the FDA, three people reported eating menu items that had slivered onions, but not quarter-pound beef patties, and one person reported eating a menu item with a fresh quarter-pound beef patty, but no onions.

However, the FDA said that evidence does not point to ground beef as the likely source of E. coli contamination in McDonald's food. On Oct. 27, the Colorado Department of Agriculture reported its microbiology lab had analyzed dozens of subsamples of beef quarter-pound patties and all were reportedly negative for E. coli.

"(The USDA's Food and Safety Inspection Service) used specific meal information reported by ill people to trace beef patties through the supply chain to the establishment where they were produced and did not identify a beef source," the FDA reported.

Symptoms of E. coli poisoning can occur quickly, within a day or two of eating contaminated food. They typically include fever, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea and signs of dehydration — little or no peeing, increased thirst and dizziness. The infection is especially dangerous for children younger than 5, people who are elderly, pregnant or who have weakened immune systems.