U.S. McDonald's Restaurants Pull Raw Tomatoes from Menu

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-tue-mcdonalds-tomatoes-salmonella-jun09,0,4285616.story

By Mike Hughlett | Tribune reporter
12:31 PM CDT, June 9, 2008
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Digg Del.icio.us Facebook Fark Google Newsvine Reddit Yahoo Print Reprints Post comment Text size: McDonald' s Corp. said Monday it has temporarily pulled tomatoes from its sandwiches in in the United States, a precautionary move in the wake of a salmonella outbreak.

Since mid-April, 145 people in at least 16 states have been infected with the bacteria known as Salmonella Saintpaul, which has been linked to raw tomatoes. The bulk of the cases have been in Texas and New Mexico, and 23 of them have required hospitalization.

In response, Oak Brook-based McDonald's, the nation's largest restaurant company, pulled tomatoes from its premium chicken sandwiches and the Big N' Tasty burger Friday. The company has not detected salmonella bacteria in any of its tomato supplies, said McDonald's spokesman Bill Whitman.

"But with an abundance of caution, we want to make sure our food items containing tomatoes are absolutely safe," he said.



Related links
Weaker dollar aids McDonald's sales Several other restaurant chains and supermarkets have also temporarily pulled tomatoes

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said that consumers should limit consumption of raw red Roma, plum and round tomatoes. The agency has advised restaurants and grocery stores not to sell those types of tomatoes.

Raw cherry tomatoes and grape tomatoes don't present a problem, the FDA says. McDonald's said it will continue to serve grape tomatoes in its premium salads.

In Illinois, 17 people have been diagnosed recently with Salmonella Saintpaul, though state health authorities say it's too early to determine if the cases are linked to tomatoes.

mhughlett@tribune.com