As the controversy over the so-called "hamburger disease" (hemolytic uremic syndrome; HUS) has resurfaced recently, the HanGook McDonald's claimed that its products cannot be considered as the cause of the disease.
McDonald's said in a statement on April 5, "It was revealed that it was difficult to acknowledge that the consumption of our products was the cause of the disease in the course of the investigation by law enforcement authorities."
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office also said it has cleared McDonald's of the charges and the Seoul High Court's rejection of the appeal and the Seoul High Court's financial application has confirmed the no-suspension.
The reasons for the innocence are that the cause of the outbreak of HUS and the route of infection vary, the incubation period of the child in question is not consistent with the medical and medical incubation period, and the product consumed by the child is pork, not beef.
A civic group called "politicizing mothers" held a press conference on April 3 in front of Cheong Wa Dae, the presidential office in Seoul, and said it will hold the government accountable through a lawsuit seeking state compensation, saying the state is also an accomplice.
"If an official who received the report thoroughly checked the McDonald's store and collected the patties used around the time, McDonald's would not have been indicted due to lack of evidence," said Choi Eun-joo, a parent of a child suffering from the hamburger disease.
