McDonald’s invests $100 million to bring back customers after E. coli outbreak

McDonald’s is investing $100 million to bring customers back to stores after a outbreak of E. coli food poisoning linked to onions on the fast food giant’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers.

The investments include $65 million that will go directly to the hardest-hit franchisees, the company said.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that ground onions on the Quarter Pounders were the likely source of the E. coli. Taylor Farms in California recalled onions potentially linked to the outbreak.

Colorado reported at least 30 cases; Montana reported 19; Nebraska, 13; and New Mexico, 10. The illnesses were reported between September 12 and October 21. At least 104 people became ill and 34 were hospitalized, according to federal health officials. One person died in Colorado and four people developed one potentially life-threatening kidney disease complication.

The Food and Drug Administration has said that “there does not appear to be an ongoing food safety concern related to this outbreak at McDonald’s restaurants.”

But the outbreak hurt the company’s sales.

Quarter Pounders were removed from menus in several states in the early days of the outbreak. McDonald’s identified an alternative supplier for the 900 restaurants that temporarily stopped serving burgers with onions. Over the past week, McDonald’s resumed sales of Quarter Pounders with ground onions nationwide.