There’s nothing better than an ice cold cola to cool down on a hot summer day, right?
Wrong — at least for those who get that ‘refreshing’ cola from certain UK McDonalds, KFC or Burger King locations.
The BBC Watchdog program tested and has found traces of coliform bacteria in the iced drinks from the world-famous fast food restaurants previously mentioned. The poo bacteria has been found in the drinking water and the ice used for their beverages.
Out of ten samples that were taken from each of the three chains, seven were found to be contaminated from KFC; six from Burger King; and three from McDonald’s.
Metro U.K. reported that four of the samples from Burger King and five from KFC were found to have a “significant” level of the coliform bacteria.
As one would hope, KFC, McDonald’s and Burger King have all responded to this incident, claiming that hygiene is one of their top priorities at the fast food restaurants.
KFC has completely shut down the ice machines that were serving the poo-tainted ice for inspection and reinforced the importance of following strict procedures regarding health to all employees, per the Metro report.
“We are awaiting the results of independent testing of the ice that will confirm they are back up to the standards we expect,” a KFC representative tells the site. “To reassure customers, we have also inspected and cleaned the ice machines in all other restaurants across the UK.”
A McDonald’s spokesman told CNBC, “Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people and we will continue to review our procedures and training, working closely with our restaurant teams to ensure those procedures are adhered to at all times.”
Likewise, Burger King has also stated that “cleanliness and hygiene are a top priority” after the tests.
This is not the first time a major food or drink chain had been reported for coliform poo in their ice. In late July, a UK Starbucks was also outed by the BBC Watchdog program for finding poo-contaminated ice; three out of ten samples were found to contain the fecal matter.