The Government Tested McDonald's Burger Patties for Ecoli, and Results Are In

Photo byFDA

Colorado, October 27, 2024 – The Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), which was handling the government's coordinated testing efforts, has announced that recent testing of McDonald’s beef patties came back negative for E. Coli.

The CDA laboratories tested multiple lots of fresh and frozen patties collected from McDonald's locations across the state on October 22 as part of an ongoing E. Coli investigation, following a deadly Ecoli outbreak linked to McDonald's.

According to the CDA, dozens of subsamples were tested, and all results showed no contamination. The agency confirmed that all testing has been completed and no further samples are expected.

What do those results mean? They show it's very unlikely that the deadly outbreak of Ecoli at McDonald's came from the burgers themselves. Most likely, they came from another ingredient from an outside supplier.

The federal investigation, led by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is focusing on onions as a possible source of the outbreak. The CDA says Colorado onions weren't linked to the outbreak, so it's possible that onions from another source were responsible.

The FDA is handling the traceback investigation related to onions, while the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) oversees meat safety at the federal level.

In Colorado, the Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is the primary agency managing the state’s response.

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