Day 294 - 05 Nov 96 - Page 17


     
     1   MR. MORRIS:   Yes, and in particular, also, not only whether it
     2        is foolproof but whether the lapses or problems regarding
     3        that system are properly documented so that we could see
     4        the reality in some of the statistics that have been
     5        supplied to us.  So I agree they are peripheral, but that
     6        they may be instructive -- if that is the word -- they may
     7        be pointers to something.  I don't mean complaints are
     8        peripheral, I mean the bit of plastic itself, whether that
     9        would cause harm to a person is open to debate.  We did not
    10        hear much evidence on that, so it has become peripheral.
    11
    12        But the fact of it being there is not peripheral, and the
    13        fact that we do not believe that these incidents are
    14        properly recorded is relevant to the number of incidents
    15        that there are in reality likely to be of undercooked
    16        Mcburgers and food poisoning at McDonald's.  For example,
    17        that Mr. Atherton stated it was slightly more for chicken,
    18        mostly concerning pieces of bone, so the impression is
    19        given that most of the official complaints that do make it
    20        through to head office, or whatever, regional office, are
    21        when there is actually a piece of something in an item that
    22        has been sold, and that complaints of undercooking or food
    23        poisoning are generally not taken seriously.  Obviously, we
    24        rely on our witnesses for that as well.
    25
    26        Now, in terms of worst case scenario, not only is that
    27        proven with the Preston incident there have been several
    28        occasions when the authorities have taken action against
    29        McDonald's for selling raw or undercooked meat products,
    30        including an incident in November 1994 when a three year
    31        old girl was served undercooked chicken McNuggets
    32        containing salmonella which were declared by local health
    33        officials as unfit for human consumption.  There were two
    34        or three more similar, which will be handed over tomorrow,
    35        the references for those.  I think they are the subject of
    36        formal admissions from McDonald's as well, some of them.
    37
    38        So the court also has heard about the company now admitting
    39        responsibility for a serious food poisoning outbreak in
    40        Preston in 1991 when several customers were hospitalised as
    41        a result of eating undercooked burgers contaminated by
    42        potentially deadly E.Coli, O157H bacteria.  They have also
    43        admitted responsibility, effectively, for a similar
    44        outbreak in 1982 in the USA caused by the same type of
    45        bacteria, which affected at least 47 people in Oregon and
    46        Michigan.
    47
    48        So here we have, if you like, both Plaintiffs, both bang to
    49        rights for serious incidents which they did not want to
    50        admit responsibility for but, because of this case, they
    51        have had to admit responsibility.  It does show, the fact
    52        they did not want to admit responsibility is a pointer to
    53        how seriously in fact they do take this issue.
    54
    55        Now, regarding the undercooking of burgers in McDonald's
    56        stores, we say that not only is the system clearly fragile
    57        because of the very tight corners, very precarious systems
    58        that rely on not having any human error in the operation,
    59        but that on top of that there are inbuilt,
    60        institutionalised, serious problems as regards this

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