From Beyonce on the campaign trail to E. Coli in your Quarter Pounder: Stories you may have missed

Beyonce campaigns for Kamala Harris in Texas

Superstar singer Beyonce formally endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for President at her campaign rally in Houston, Texas.

CBS News reports that while Beyonce did not perform at the rally, she did speak on the issue of reproductive rights, which was the headline topic for the event.

“I’m not here as a celebrity, I’m not here as a politician. I’m here as a mother,” Beyonce said. “A mother who cares deeply about the world my children and all of our children live in, a world where we have the freedom to control our bodies, a world where we’re not divided.”

According to USA Today, Beyonce was also joined on stage by Destiny’s Child bandmate Kelly Rowland. While neither of them performed, there was a live performance by singer Willie Nelson, who also endorsed Harris.

“Are you ready to say Madam President?” Nelson asked a packed stadium of Harris supporters.

One supporter, April Busby, told Houston Public Media that she arrived at 4:00 a.m. to wait in line to see Harris.

“I really, truly believe that she is going to bring us above the other guy, and we need that. We need her to unify all of us,” Busby said.

McDonald’s Quarter Pounders lead to an E. coli outbreak

An outbreak of E. coli linked to McDonald’s Quarter Pounders led to a significant health investigation at many McDonald's locations.

According to CNN, the outbreak began on Sept. 27 and caused McDonalds to remove Quarter Pounders from the menu in nearly a fifth of its stores.

E. coli, according to the Mayo Clinic, is mostly harmless except for a few strains of the bacteria which can cause health issues. Symptoms of exposure to E. coli include stomach cramps, vomiting, and bloody diarrhea. While most healthy adults recover in a week, young children and older adults have a greater risk of developing a life-threatening form of kidney failure.

U.S. News reports that the outbreak has sickened 75 people in 13 states and landed 22 people in the hospital. There was also one reported death in Colorado due to the E. coli contamination.

While it was originally believed that the beef patties were the cause of the outbreak, according to U.S. News, further investigation shows that the slivered onions on the Quarter Pounder were the real source.

Taylor Farms, the supplier of the onions, has issued a recall on their product. While the investigation continued, McDonalds released a statement that they were confident that the contaminated product had been removed.

“The issue appears to be contained to a particular ingredient and geography, and we remain very confident that any contaminated product related to this outbreak has been removed from our supply chain and is out of all McDonald’s restaurants,” the company said.