🍔 McDonald’s E. coli scare

…and Dr Pepper nabs a new energy drink

(Mario Tama/Getty Images) Issues under the arches Presented by Hey Snackers, American Airlines is testing tech that would give an audible signal when over-eager flyers try to board before their group's called. Imagine if it's a DJ-style air horn or voices chanting "Shame." Tech stocks gained yesterday and Tesla shares had their best rally in more than a decade. Earnings kept raining down as investors looked ahead to biggies like Alphabet and Apple next week. Meanwhile, Treasury yields dipped slightly after their recent climb. 👻 Quiz or treat: There are no trick questions in this week's stat-filled Snacks Seven quiz, and scoring 7/7 is a sugar-free rush. Try the first q: What generates nearly a fifth of the US's electricity? (Check your answer.) GRILLED McDonald's is served its first lawsuit after a Quarter Pounder E. coli outbreak Fast-food safety crisis… McDonald's was hit with its first lawsuit in connection with an E. coli outbreak in some of its Quarter Pounder burgers. Refresher: McD's stock sank 5% Wednesday after the CDC issued a food-safety alert tying the popular burger to 49 illnesses and one death in 10 US states. Regulators investigating the fast-food co have not confirmed which ingredient was contaminated, but suggested it could be onions. McDonald's said it's taken Quarter Pounders off a fifth of its US stores' menus. Meantime, the FDA said it was investigating McD's supplier Taylor Farms as a potential source of the spoiled onions; TF said it has recalled four types of its onions so far. McDonald's says that its top priority is "serving customers safely" and that the affected ingredients have "very likely" worked their way out of its supply chain. The CDC says that the "true number of sick people is likely much higher than the number reported." Burrito blow-up… Investors fear the Quarter Pounder crisis could morph into a Chipotle-level disaster. In 2015, the burrito chain suffered from a years-long E. coli and norovirus outbreak that affected 1K+ diners and resulted in a $25M fine (the largest ever for a food-safety case at the time). Chipotle's reputation and stock price plummeted, wiping out $6B of its market cap in just a year. For McDonald's, the Quarter Pounder debacle isn't its first food crisis, but it could be a meatier one: Unwrapped: In 2018, McD's removed salads from thousands of restaurants after they were linked to nearly 400 cases of intestinal illnesses. But salads aren't key to the chain's biz — like burgers — and the brand's stock didn't take too big a hit. THE TAKEAWAY One mistake can leave a bad taste… While some analysts say the McDonald's outbreak could be more limited than other food-safety crises, rivals like Taco Bell and KFC are reacting by pulling onions off some menus. The outbreak could be another burn for McD's, which has had slower restaurant sales this year. Look for more updates Tuesday, when the beleaguered burger co drops earnings. Read this online Presented by Atombeam AI Company Unveils Data Shrinking Technology, Slashing IoT Costs by Up to 75% Machine communication, reimagined…  Global storage centers are struggling to keep pace with data generation — but Atombeam's tech could replace billions in costly hardware upgrades. Their AI-powered software compresses data 2-4X faster, making networks faster and more secure without requiring new infrastructure. How? Data compaction. Atombeam's Neurpac software aims to merge data reduction, security and searchability into one algorithm, with an average 75% reduction in data size for low entropy data. Atombeam believes its ultrafast encoding works on most processors, potentially enhancing security without added computation.  6500+ shareholders have already invested in Atombeam in prior and current offerings. One previous offering even sold out. With customers like the U.S. Air Force and Space Force, and industry partners like NVIDIA, Ericsson and Intel,1 Atombeam wants to  transform big data. The company's current round has already raised $7M — but the opportunity closes soon on December 18. Learn more about becoming an Atombeam investor here.2 1 The partnership relationship varies between companies and can include the following: inclusion on a preferred vendor list, invitations to participate in certain forums; listed on the other company's website, and introduction and networking opportunities. Presented by Atombeam AI Company Unveils Data Shrinking Technology, Slashing IoT Costs by Up to 75% Machine communication, reimagined…  Global storage centers are struggling to keep pace with data generation — but Atombeam's tech could replace billions in costly hardware upgrades. Their AI-powered software compresses data 2-4X faster, making networks faster and more secure without requiring new infrastructure. How? Data compaction. Atombeam's Neurpac software aims to merge data reduction, security and searchability into one algorithm, with an average 75% reduction in data size for low entropy data. Atombeam believes its ultrafast encoding works on most processors, potentially enhancing security without added computation.  6500+ shareholders have already invested in Atombeam in prior and current offerings. One previous offering even sold out. With customers like the U.S. Air Force and Space Force, and industry partners like NVIDIA, Ericsson and Intel,1 Atombeam wants to  transform big data. The company's current round has already raised $7M — but the opportunity closes soon on December 18. Learn more about becoming an Atombeam investor here.2 1 The partnership relationship varies between companies and can include the following: inclusion on a preferred vendor list, invitations to participate in certain forums; listed on the other company's website, and introduction and networking opportunities. PICK-ME-UP Dr Pepper makes a $1B addition to its flavor profile as Big Soda pours into energy drinks A burst of energy… Beverage behemoth Keurig Dr Pepper is bouncing off the walls and into the energy-drink aisle. The company said yesterday that it's buying Ghost, a fast-growing energy and sports-bev brand, for $1B+. That'd make it its biggest acquisition since it took over the parent co of Dr Pepper and Snapple six years ago in a $19B deal. The plan: KDP will first invest $990M into Ghost for a 60% stake, and then buy the remaining 40% in four years. It hopes its latest highly caffeinated play (Ghost drinks have about 5x the caffeine of a Dr Pepper) can help it capture some of the $23B US energy-drink market. Off the shelf: Ghost is sold in lots of flavors, including cobranded candy varieties evoking Sour Patch Kids and Swedish Fish. The energy bevvie's sales have quadrupled in three years. Can collection: In 2022, KDP bought a 30% stake in C4 Energy maker Nutrabolt and invested in the sugar-free A Shoc brand. And last month it teamed up with Black Rifle Coffee to sell its expanded energy-bev line. More energy, more passion… Big Soda's been guzzling energy drinks. Coca-Cola is the largest shareholder of Monster Beverage, which acquired Bang Energy out of bankruptcy last year. PepsiCo nabbed Rockstar Energy for $3.9B in 2020. Two years later Coke poured $550M into Celsius, which has been winning with women who work out. And as the pick-me-up market grows (thanks largely to teens) restaurants are also taking a sip. Starbucks and Dunkin' each introduced higher-caff energy-drink options this year, and Sonic sells a Red Bull Slush. THE TAKEAWAY Don't judge a drink by its can… Energy drinks have evolved beyond aggressive aesthetics (picture Monster's claw-mark can) made for dirt bikers and skydivers. Now some brands position themselves as healthy-ish caffeine-packed liquids that pair perfectly with a squat sesh. With cleaner can designs and an emphasis on vitamins, some bevs have been criticized over using a "halo of health" to pump sales as health professionals question their safety. Read this online ON SHERWOOD Starbucks is really struggling in America — in China, things are much worse  New CEO Brian Niccol has serious work to do. Read more. What else we're Snackin' UPS stock popped after the FedEx rival delivered its first annual revenue and profit gains in two years following a postpandemic parcel pullback. WWE owner TKO plans to beef up its alt-sports portfolio by buying the Professional Bull Riders league in a $3.3B deal. American Airlines and Southwest shared rising optimism for Q4 as American tries to win back biz-class flyers and Southwest fends off a proxy fight. Hermès sales rose 11% in Q3 as shoppers who've skipped out on rival retailers like LVMH and Gucci maker Kering kept buying Birkins. Apple's said to be reining in production of its Vision Pro mixed-reality headsets as demand for the $3.5K device disappoints.  Up and Atom: Atombeam's data reduction technology could be a new horizon in machine communication — and former customers include the U.S. Space Force, Air Force and Saab. Become an investor until 12/18.2 Ad Snack Fact of the Day Applications to traditional MBA programs have hit a decade high Friday Consumer-sentiment index Earnings expected from Colgate-Palmolive, AutoNation, and Sanofi Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Apple Advertiser's disclosures: 2 This is a paid advertisement for Atombeam's Regulation A+ Offering. This Reg. A+ offering is made available through StartEngine Primary, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Please read the Offering Circular and related risks at Atombeam's webpage on StartEngine before investing.  This was a paid for ad. Sherwood Media has been compensated for this ad by the Atombeam Reg A+ Campaign hosted on StartEngine. Investing in private company securities is not suitable for all investors because it is highly speculative and involves a high degree of risk. It should only be considered a long-term investment. You must be prepared to withstand a total loss of your investment. Private company securities are also highly illiquid, and there is no guarantee that a market will develop for such securities. Was this email forwarded to you? Love what you're reading? 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