McDonald’s side said, “The cost of the medical examination is suggested.” 
▲ Parasite found in McDonald’s burger
Yonhap News Agency
Amid a complaint that a parasite came out of a burger sold at a McDonald’s store in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, it was alleged that the management attempted to cover it up by offering compensation
According to McDonald’s Korea on the 22nd, a complaint was filed at a McDonald’s store in Icheon earlier this month that “a foreign substance came out of a burger.”
According to buyer A, he found a foreign substance that appeared to be a parasite while eating a burger at this store at around 4:40 p.m. on the 2nd The burger Mr. A bought is a burger with fish patties
McDonald’s Korea said in a statement, “We sincerely apologize to customers who have experienced inconvenience due to this incident,” adding, “We are currently closely investigating the related contents with our partners who supplied food ingredients.”
McDonald’s usually refund foreign substances found in the product and retrieve the product in question to investigate the ingredients and cause of the occurrence
However, it was reported that the buyer did not send the product out of fear that McDonald’s would discard the burger pieces, so the refund was completed, but the product was not recovered
McDonald’s said in a related development, “It is currently difficult to accurately identify foreign substances due to the inability to recover them, but according to the photos received, it is presumed to be a type of parasite, whale roundworm.”
“When the material supplier produces fish fillets, the detector identifies and removes foreign substances such as whale roundworms and fine thorns, but 100 foreign substances may not be removed,” he explained
Whale roundworms found in fish can enter the human body through raw or undercooked fish such as sashimi or sushi, but they are known to die if heated at 60°C for more than a minute
McDonald’s offers compensation and demands an agreement
Meanwhile, a buyer informed McDonald’s that a foreign substance was found, but McDonald’s reportedly demanded an agreement on the condition that it was not notified to the outside world, sparking controversy
McDonald’s raised the compensation to 500,000 won when A refused, saying that the management offered 200,000 won in compensation for A’s complaint and demanded an agreement to close the compensation without taking issue with this case
McDonald’s explained, “In case customers feel uncomfortable with their bodies, we first proposed the usual medical examination cost in accordance with internal regulations, but we re-proposed it with the changed amount reflecting the average cost of comprehensive medical examination near their residence.”
“When providing compensation costs, we will prepare an agreement, and the agreement includes confidentiality provisions between the parties,” he said. “We regret that the process is perceived as unpleasant to customers, and we will check the internal regulations to prevent similar cases in the future.”
