E coli outbreak linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounders declared over: CDC

The deadly E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounders was declared over on Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In total, 104 people reported falling ill across 14 states with about one-third of them being hospitalized, according to the CDC.

The true number of people who got sick was likely much higher because many people recover from E. coli without medical care and are never tested, the CDC noted.

Americans between ages 1 and 88 were affected in the outbreak, according to he CDC. Colorado had the greatest number of cases with at least 30 people falling ill. The state also reported one death.

An outbreak notice was first released by the CDC in late October. Evidence from health officials' investigation at the time showed that slivered onions served on Quarter Pounders were a likely source of contamination.

Nearly all the people who fell ill and were interviewed by health officials reported eating at McDonald's and the overwhelming majority remembered eating a menu item that contained the fresh, slivered onions, according to the CDC.

The fast food chain's distributor of the onions, Taylor Farms, initiated a voluntary recall of the onions in late October. McDonald's stopped using the ingredient and removed the Quarter Pounder entirely off the menu in a dozen states.

The latest reported illness was on Oct 21. All the confirmed cases occurred before the onions were recalled and the ingredient was taken off of the McDonald's menu at some locations, according to health officials.

The fast-food chain is no longer serving the recalled onions and there "does not appear to be a continued food safety concern related to this outbreak," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday. The agency also noted that its investigation is now closed.

McDonald's North America chief Impact officer Michael Gonda and chief supply chain officer Cesar Piña shared a message on Tuesday, saying the announcements from the CDC and FDA provide "certainty and validation" that the outbreak is over and the risk to the public has remained low since late October.

While the issue had been fully contained -- and any contaminated product associated with this issue had been removed from our supply chain as of Oct. 22, 2024 -- it can now be classified as "closed" and remediated," the message read, in part.