Kevin O’Leary urges McDonald’s execs to have ‘100% transparency’ on E. coli outbreak

If Kevin O’Leary was the head of American fast-food favorite McDonald’s, he would make sure executives are completely transparent with customers over its recent E. coli outbreak.

“One-hundred percent total transparency, as soon as executives get the information,” the O’Leary Ventures chairman advised on “The Claman Countdown” Wednesday.

“Put it out there. That’s the key,” he added. “You need to maintain the trust between the consumer and the management, because this is an evolving story.”

McDonald’s and multiple government agencies are still investigating the source of an E. coli outbreak linked to a menu staple: Quarter Pounder hamburgers.

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On Wednesday, the company confirmed that the beef has not been ruled out as a potential cause, though earlier reports pointed to the raw sliced onions used in Quarter Pounders.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) along with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture have confirmed 49 people fell ill in multiple states after eating Quarter Pounders. There have been 10 hospitalizations and one death linked to the outbreak.

O’Leary gave an example from Tylenol in 1982 when a nationwide scare ensued over a series of deaths due to alleged drug tampering.

“It’s a case study that many of us teach in various institutions, how well the company managed that by being totally transparent and maintaining trust and removing all the product from the shelf. It is a chestnut case in business schools,” O’Leary said.

“McDonald’s is a trusted brand in America. Millions of people use it and trust it, and that’s the thing that they’ve got to protect is that trust,” he continued.

McDonald’s spokespeople also said Wednesday that the CDC informed the company of the outbreak last week, and the company is working with the agencies involved to determine whether beef or onions – the two ingredients in the sandwich that could be carriers for E. coli – are the cause.

The entrepreneur criticized McDonald’s for not alerting the public and its customers sooner.

“It’s [about] never holding back, because ultimately in these stories, everything gets out. Everything, everything, everything,” O’Leary noted, “whether it’s leaked or it’s disclosed intentionally, every second of new information, get it out there.”

“But if they’re listening to us right now, this is paramount. Even if you sound [like you’re] stumbling or even if you don’t have all the pertinent information, get out what you have and explain… That is how you maintain trust in a family. And McDonald’s has a family of Americans that go there to eat.”

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FOX Business’ Breck Dumas contributed to this report.