McDonald’s Dumps Egg Farm

McDonald's announced that it no longer will accept eggs from the country's fifth largest egg producer, Sparboe Farms. The farm was caught on tape abusing chickens and having conditions ripe for a salmonella outbreak.

The graphic video tape was taken by an undercover member of an animal rights activist group, The Mercy for Animals.

ABC reports that the Federal Department of Agriculture cited five locations having "serious" and "significant violations" of the recently enacted federal egg rule that was meant to prevent dangerous salmonella outbreaks. "This is a warning that there is a systemic problem, not just at one barn or one location," said former FDA food safety chief David Acheson, now an industry consultant.

A spokesman for Sparboe told ABC: "Sparboe has never had a single egg or chicken detected with salmonella. He added, "There was no cause for any enforcement action."

On November 18, McDonald's issued this statement about the provider of all its breakfast eggs west of the Mississippi: "We have informed our direct supplier, Cargill, that we will no longer accept eggs from its supplier, Sparboe." It reassured customers that the entire supply chain meets McDonald's standards for quality and health safety.