Day 079 - 27 Jan 95 - Page 54


     
     1        A.  What, of E.coli?
     2
     3   Q.   Yes.
     4        A.  No.  We would not let any burger go out into the
     5        McDonald's distribution chain until it was cleared of not
     6        having E.coli.
     7
     8   Q.   So, what is the fastest that your line moves from the combo
     9        arriving?  The combo of frozen beef arrives at the back
    10        door, whatever, it is chilled, fresh chilled, partly
    11        frozen, and then it gets blended, squashed, turned into
    12        patties and is out the other door, how long does that take?
    13        A.  To blend is maximum of 12 and a half minutes; to freeze
    14        it is about three minutes; to pack it is 10 minutes.
    15        I mean, in an ideal fast situation it would be about 20
    16        minutes of that meat coming in the door and being a frozen
    17        burger.  But that burger does not leave the factory; that
    18        frozen burger is held in the factory.  We always hold two
    19        weeks stock and it moves out on a FIFO system.
    20
    21   MS. STEEL:  Earlier when you said about the unsatisfactory
    22        bacteria count, it was too late to stop it from going out
    23        in the system?
    24        A.  The point I was making then is the term
    25        "unsatisfactory" is relative.  It is a McDonald's standard
    26        count.  McDonald's set the count.  Maybe "unsatisfactory"
    27        is the wrong word, but it is the word that everybody in
    28        McDonald's knows.  It might be unsatisfactory, but it is
    29        not dangerous, it is not poisonous; it is unsatisfactory to
    30        McDonald's standards.  McDonald's is always striving
    31        continually to get the best standards possible in food.
    32
    33   Q.   But what is the point of having a standard of something
    34        that is unsatisfactory if you are going to supply the
    35        product anyway?
    36        A.  My Lord, I am trying to explain the relative point of
    37        the description "unsatisfactory".  It does not mean it is
    38        dangerous or poisonous.
    39
    40   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No, I understand.  What it means is, as
    41        I understand it and tell me if I am wrong, that it is there
    42        as a guide to keep your supplier up to the mark.
    43        A.  Quite right, sir.
    44
    45   Q.   At least in part?
    46        A.  Yes, sir.
    47
    48   Q.   Because if you get a second lot you want to know what for?
    49        A.  Precisely, sir.  It is not dangerous.  It is probably a
    50        bad word to use in a quality control document, but it has 
    51        always been used.  It does not mean that it is poisonous or 
    52        dangerous or anything like that.  It is unsatisfactory to 
    53        McKey, McDonald's standards.
    54
    55   MS. STEEL:   But why do McDonald's set a standard -- why do they
    56        say it is unsatisfactory to have more than 10 million
    57        bacteria per gramme, if they are then prepared to accept it
    58        as long it does not continue the next time around?  What is
    59        the point in setting that?
    60        A.  Well, I thought that with the help of his Lordship we

Prev Next Index