One person died and 10 were hospitalized with E. coli infections tied to McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.
The outbreak began Sept. 27 and has sickened a total of 49 people in 10 states in the Midwest and Western U.S through Oct. 11, according to the CDC.
But more recent illnesses may not have been reported and the true number is likely much higher, the CDC said.
“This is a fast-moving outbreak investigation,” the CDC said. “McDonald’s has pulled ingredients for these burgers, and they won’t be available for sale in some states.”
Infections have been reported in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Most of the cases are in Colorado, which has 27, followed by Nebraska, with nine.
McDonald’s stock plunged nearly 10% in after-hours trading, to a low of $284.48 a share.
In a statement, the company said that initial findings suggested some cases were tied to onions from a single supplier and that it had had stopped distributing the slivered onions, according to the Associated Press.
It’s also stopped selling Quarter Pounders in the affected states and parts of Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
“We take food safety extremely seriously and it’s the right thing to do,” the statement said.
E. coli bacteria are found in the intestines of people and animals, and can be spread through contaminated food and water, according to the CDC.
Some strains can cause diarrhea, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, sepsis, and other illnesses.
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