The president of McDonald’s USA said Wednesday that the company can “restore confidence” as it tries to minimize the damage from an E. coli outbreak linked to the chain’s Quarter Pounders in several states.

“We are very confident that you can go to McDonald’s and enjoy our classics. We acted quickly yesterday and removed the Quarter Pounder from our menu. This was a quick and decisive action on our part,” Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald’s USA, told NBC’s “TODAY” show.

He said the company is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but would not say whether the company believes contaminated food is still being used by other companies in the affected areas.

Asked whether the outbreak would harm the company and cause long-term damage to its reputation, Erlinger said: “You know, our founder famously said, ‘If you take care of our customers, the business will take care of itself.’

“And on a day like today, given the news we’ve received in the last 24 hours, that’s really our focus. “We’re confident we’ll get through this and restore Americans’ trust.” Getting consumers to come to McDonald’s,” he continued.

The outbreak sickened at least 49 people in 10 states and killed one older adult in Colorado, according to the CDC. Ten people were hospitalized, including a child who developed a kidney disease called hemolytic uremic syndrome.

However, it is not known which ingredient is making people sick, and onion slices and quarter-pound beef patties – both used in recipes – are being investigated. Quarter pounders were pulled from restaurants in affected states.

McDonald’s announced Tuesday its initial findings from an investigation that “a subset of illnesses may be linked to onion slivers used in the Quarter Pounder and purchased from a single supplier serving three distribution centers.”

The CDC launched an investigation on October 15 after the outbreak’s first case appeared on September 27, and Colorado health officials alerted the CDC to a spike in E. coli cases on October 10.

When asked whether the number of sick people is likely to rise, given the outbreak data, Erlinger said: “If there was a contaminated product in our supply chain, it has most likely already spread through that supply chain.”

He said the company would “accommodate more data” from the CDC as the investigation progresses and “continue to let science guide our actions.”

Officials believe it is possible that more illnesses will be reported because it takes three to four weeks to determine whether a sick person is part of an outbreak. Symptoms of an E. coli infection include high fever over 102 degrees, severe stomach cramps, diarrhea and vomiting.

The most cases were reported in Colorado with 26 and Nebraska with nine cases. Additional cases have been reported in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.