A rapidly expanding foodborne illness outbreak across the United States has taken a new turn, after federal health officials announced an additional sample of iceberg lettuce from major agricultural supplier Taylor Farms has tested positive for the parasite responsible for thousands of infections.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) confirmed that the contaminated sample, collected during targeted import surveillance as part of the ongoing outbreak investigation, was traced to a production lot not included in the voluntary product removal Taylor Farms announced last Friday. The California-based agriculture firm, which counts major fast-food chain Taco Bell among its high-profile customers, has already committed to sweeping market action: pulling all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico from retail and foodservice locations across the country.
Public health experts have stressed a key distinction between the current voluntary withdrawal and a formal mandatory recall: a recall requires companies to actively notify customers and retrieve all affected products from commercial channels, a broader and far more costly regulatory process that carries stricter compliance requirements. Right now, Taylor Farms is working urgently to trace the newly identified positive lot to determine if any of the lettuce remains on store shelves or in consumers’ homes.
As of the latest updates, no fatalities linked to the cyclospora outbreak have been recorded, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that at least 94 people have required hospital care for severe symptoms of infection. The outbreak was first detected in mid-May, and public health officials note that symptoms of the parasitic illness can take up to 14 days to emerge, meaning new cases are still being added to official counts. Infected individuals typically experience prolonged watery diarrhea, unexpected rapid weight loss, and loss of appetite.
The CDC has issued a clear public warning advising consumers in five U.S. states—Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia—to avoid eating any shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations. The fast-food chain has already announced it has completed removing all potentially affected Taylor Farms lettuce from its restaurant locations across the affected regions.
In an official statement released amid the investigation, Taylor Farms said it has “stopped receiving product from the implicated lot, suspended distribution of the iceberg lettuce from Central Mexico, notified [its] customers and [is] continuing to work with the FDA, CDC, and state authorities” to contain the outbreak.
The current market withdrawal covers products distributed across 27 U.S. states. Beyond Taco Bell, the affected products include Marketside-branded iceberg lettuce sold at Walmart locations across 15 states, the FDA confirmed.