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Taylor Farms recalled potentially contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce in 27 states on Friday, including lettuce distributed as recently as Thursday, as cases of cyclosporiasis continue rising in the US.
The US is likely to see at least another two weeks of possible cases, since infections may have happened in recent days. And the expanding outbreak investigation could point to other products in coming days.
Taylor Farms named 27 states where the iceberg lettuce was distributed and included lot codes of produce – but it did not specify the brand names of the products or where they were served and sold. This will likely complicate the recall, with stores, restaurants and consumers attempting to understand which brands and products may be contaminated.
The mega-producer is removing the lettuce that came from its Guanajuato facility in central Mexico, “because it has the potential to be contaminated with Cyclospora”, according to the recall notice. Large retailers like Costco, Target and Walmart carry Taylor Farms products, and the producer also owns organic farms like Earthbound Farm.
In this outbreak, at least 34 states have reported cases. New York and Colorado are reporting higher-than-usual cyclosporiasis cases, but they were not included on the recall list.
While Taylor is only recalling shredded iceberg lettuce at this point, it’s possible other products that were grown or processed in the same facility may carry cyclospora, a parasite that embeds in produce.
There are also potential risks from producers in the same area if they shared water that was contaminated.
Taco Bell was the first restaurant to announce it would stop serving produce in several states in light of the outbreak. On Friday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned against eating shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. But the notice may expand in coming days.
“FDA’s investigation is ongoing,” the agency’s notice said. “Because the investigation remains ongoing, additional implicated brands, restaurants, retailers, or distribution channels may be identified as the investigation continues.”
The FDA notice identified more than 1,600 cases linked to the same product – but many other cases have emerged since late June. Michigan, for example, has confirmed more than 5,000 cases of cyclosporiasis. Last summer, the US saw a total of 249 confirmed cases across all states.
Executives at Taylor Farms met with officials at the White House and FDA in an attempt to distance the company from the investigation, according to reporting by the New York Times.
Taylor Farms did not respond by press time to the Guardian’s questions about why specific products were not identified, how long the company have been aware of potential contamination and whether other products may also be risky.
“There are cyclospora outbreaks every summer,” Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health secretary, said on a podcast in his first public comments about the outbreak on Friday. “Now that we know the probable culprit, I think it’s going to be much easier for people to make healthy choices.”
But Kennedy didn’t clarify that the number of cases is much higher than usual, and he didn’t mention that the investigation could uncover more contaminated products.
Officials in Michigan first identified lettuce as a possible source of the outbreak on Monday.
“We are aware of the signal for lettuce,” Dr Donald Prater, acting deputy commissioner for food at the FDA, told journalists on Tuesday. “What I can say at this point is that we’re continuing our traceback investigation on multiple produce items, including the lettuce.”
This is not the first time serious foodborne illnesses have been linked to Taylor Farms.
In 2013, the company was linked to an outbreak of cyclospora at restaurants like the Olive Garden and Red Lobster. And in October 2024, an E coli outbreak clustered around McDonald’s Quarter Pounders was linked to the producer’s slivered onions.
