The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is investigating iceberg lettuce supplied to some Taco Bell restaurants by Taylor Farms as a possible source of a growing outbreak of cyclosporiasis in four Midwestern states; It is a stomach infection that causes weeks of severe diarrhea, according to a person familiar with the research.
Nationwide, nearly 7,000 people may have fallen ill, with 1,645 of those cases confirmed and more than 5,100 still under investigation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). No deaths have been reported.
Earlier this week, the CDC announced an investigation into more than 400 cases in Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky.
The Washington Post was the first to report on the possible source of the outbreak.
Taylor Farms and Yum Brands, Taco Bell’s parent companydid not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Midwest outbreak is unlikely to account for all cases nationwide. Experts indicated there could be multiple outbreaks of different origins.
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Michigan has been the hardest hit state this summer, with 4,312 cases as of Thursday. (CDC counts typically lag state counts.) The state health department reported that 102 people in the state have had to be hospitalized.
Michigan health officials had previously pointed to lettuce and salad greens as a possible source, based on more than 1,000 interviews with people who tested positive.
It has been difficult to get to the source of the outbreak, as the parasite’s incubation period until a person becomes ill can be up to two weeks.
A Taco Bell spokesperson said Tuesday that the company had “voluntarily and temporarily withdrawn some ingredients” at some of its restaurants as a precaution, adding that “public health authorities have not confirmed a link to Taco Bell or any specific ingredient, supplier, restaurant or retailer.”
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This is not the first time Taylor Farms has been linked to a cyclosporiasis outbreak. In 2013, 631 people in 25 states were sickened by a salad mix linked to the company, health officials concluded. Many of the cases were reported in Iowa and Nebraska among people who had eaten at Olive Garden and Red Lobster. Ultimately, it was determined that the outbreak originated from a salad mix from a Taylor Farms processing plant in Mexico.
Health officials also determined that Taylor Farms was the cause of an E. coli outbreak in 2024 related to the onion slices on McDonald’s Quarter Pounder burgers. According to the FDA, 104 people became ill in 14 states during that outbreak. Nearly three dozen were hospitalized; Four people, including at least one child, developed serious kidney problems. One person, an older adult from Colorado, died.
