Day 066 - 14 Dec 94 - Page 20


     
     1        one McDonald's restaurant, in that time of January 1991?
     2        A.  That is correct.
     3
     4   Q.   Have you also heard of a case -- this is before your time
     5         -- at McDonald's in 1982 in Michigan, Oregon, where there
     6        was an outbreak of food poisoning so-called attributed
     7        McDonald's?
     8        A.  That is correct.
     9
    10   Q.   Have you also heard of a case in 1987 where an outbreak of
    11        typhoid happened at Silver Spring, Maryland, where it
    12        turned out that one of the crew members of the McDonald's
    13        restaurant was, unknown to him and to the restaurant, a
    14        typhoid carrier; have you heard of that?
    15        A.  Yes, I have.
    16
    17   Q.   I think the typhoid got transmitted to the shrimp salad or
    18        something like that?
    19        A.  That is correct.
    20
    21   Q.   Can I take it -- perhaps nobody minds if I put it this way;
    22          I think you have already told us -- food safety of a
    23        product is a primary concern of yours, yours personally?
    24        A.  Undoubtedly.
    25
    26   Q.   Do you know whether by report or from your own experience
    27        of any other cases of food-borne illness caused by the
    28        consumption of McDonald's food?
    29        A.  No, not that I can think of or recall, I do not.
    30
    31   Q.   Suppose it should be concluded in this court that that is a
    32        remarkably small number of cases, just assume that for the
    33        moment?
    34        A.  Yes.
    35
    36   Q.   To what do you attribute that phenomenon, why so few get
    37        it?
    38        A.  I can probably go back to what I mentioned before,
    39        because we have an integrated system to ensure food
    40        safety.  We work with our people.  We work to develop the
    41        best processors and products and we have a unique
    42        relationship with what we call our McDonald's system that
    43        consists of our suppliers, our franchisees or licensees or
    44        the joint venture partners and our employees.  That kind of
    45        relationship is unique within the food industry worldwide.
    46        We spend -- we take our business more seriously than
    47        anybody that I know or I am aware of.
    48
    49   Q.   One other small aspect of this, then I will move on to the
    50        animals themselves, Dr. Gonzales.  I suppose it may happen 
    51        from time to time that a restaurant or perhaps even a 
    52        supplier, but a restaurant in particular, finds it has an 
    53        infestation of some undesirable creature such as
    54        cockroaches or mice, something of that kind?
    55        A.  Yes.
    56
    57   Q.   Does it happen?  Does it happen from time to time?
    58        A.  Yes, it happens, not very often but it can happen.
    59
    60   Q.   What are the rules internally about dealing with that kind

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