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For people crazy about ice cream, this year's national ice cream day in the US on July 16 could have been the last time they turned to McDonald's.
As the transnational fast food chain celebrated its record high quarterly sales within five years, unsavory photos allegedly showing the interior of the restaurant's ice cream machine suddenly swept the internet.
The man who uncovered the problem worked in one of McDonald's restaurants in Louisiana.
Taking the job of cleaning the ice cream machine, he was astounded by the filthy metal tray inside the machine.
He posted the photos on Twitter, receiving about 14,000 retweets and thousands of comments.
A spokesperson for McDonald's headquarters in America later said that they are "committed to running high-quality food, service, and a clean environment".
The fast food restaurant's Chinese branch issued a formal statement on its Weibo account, trying to dispel concerns about the safety of its ice cream sold in China.
The information still needs verification, and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) purportedly launched an investigation.
If proved to be true, this will be another scandal following a succession of food safety problems in transnational restaurant chains over the years, most notably the problems concerning ice cubes in KFC in 2013 and the use of a banned dye Sudan in 2005.
Why do similar problems constantly come up? Share your opinions.
Source: Daily Mail
Editors: Zhang Xi, Zheng Peihan (intern)
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