Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110

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McDonald's customer claims his iced tea contained cleaning fluid

Both the press and social media carry a myriad of warnings about the perils of consuming fast food but rarely do we hear about a customer needing a trip to the local hospital as a result of drinking tea at one of these establishments.

ABC News however has reported an incident whereby an Indianapolis reserve police officer, having taken a swig of his McDonald's iced tea, ended up in hospital because the drink was - allegedly - contaminated with cleaning chemicals.

Paul Watkins purchased a self-serve tea before his shift, filling his cup halfway with unsweetened tea and going on to fill the rest with sweetened tea, when he noticed it looked dark. He took the lid off the dispenser to investigate and determined that it was OK.

He filled his cup and took a big gulp and immediately his throat started burning down into his chest, so he spat out the rest of the tea and told the girl behind the counter that there was something wrong. The manager then told him the employees had put a cleaning solution into the tea dispenser and they had forgotten to put a cup over the nozzle.

Mr Watkins declined the replacement cup he was offered before leaving and shortly afterwards became violently ill.

He called the police station and poison control, which determined that the tea dispenser was filled with a "heavy duty degreaser" chemical, according to the police report. He spent the night in hospital and underwent endoscopy the following day. He has since returned to his daily life, but he still has problems swallowing and experiences burning in his throat. He's also concerned about the long-term effects of ingesting the chemicals.

The owner of the McDonald's where Watkins was served, Elizabeth Henry, issued the following statement: "Serving my customers safe, high quality food and beverages is a top priority at our restaurants. We take this claim very seriously and are looking into the matter."

5th March 2015