Cyclospora lettuce outbreak reaches 1,947 cases, CDC says
The CDC says 1,947 people have been infected in a nine-state outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce, with no deaths reported.
By Sal Moretti · Money Reporter
3 min read
The cyclospora lettuce outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce has grown to 1,947 infections across nine states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday, keeping public worry high even after federal officials pointed to a suspected source and companies pulled products.
The CDC said at least 98 people have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
The outbreak has been tied by health officials to iceberg lettuce believed to have come from a Taylor Farms facility in central Mexico. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had said earlier that the source had been identified and that companies involved had put a recall in place, according to CBS News.
Taylor Farms said Saturday that, as of Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had not confirmed positive cyclospora results from tests of its product samples. A company spokesperson said Taylor Farms removed potentially affected products from the market when questions arose and expanded the recall to all iceberg lettuce sourced from the region as a precaution.
The company also said it voluntarily stopped sourcing and producing iceberg lettuce from central Mexico. Taylor Farms supplied lettuce to Taco Bell, which said it removed the affected products from its restaurants.
What states are in the cyclospora lettuce outbreak?
The CDC has confirmed illnesses in Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Health officials also suspect multiple cyclospora outbreaks across 41 states, with more than 4,100 laboratory-confirmed cases and 7,400 suspected cases since May 1.
The CDC said the confirmed case count is expected to increase even after the recall because it can take up to six weeks for federal and state officials to determine whether a sick person is part of an outbreak.
Conflicting test information has added to the public uncertainty. The FDA said last week that a Taylor Farms lettuce sample that had tested positive for cyclospora was later determined to be a false positive. On Monday, however, the FDA said its investigation and data still point toward shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms locations in central Mexico.
Mexico’s Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risks said Friday that its own testing found no evidence of the parasite at Taylor Farms. The agency said it tested 10 lettuce samples and four water samples.
What is cyclospora and how does it spread?
Cyclospora is a microscopic parasite that usually infects people through contaminated food or water. It causes cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal illness that can bring severe diarrhea, and symptoms may take up to two weeks to appear.
Dr. Ulysses Wu, chief epidemiologist for Hartford HealthCare, told CBS News he did not think officials could say the situation was under control. He said that even if the lettuce was implicated, it would not rule out other produce.
The FDA on Thursday also reported a separate new cyclospora outbreak linked to products it did not identify. In North Carolina, health officials said they are investigating more than 560 cases since May 1 that may be connected to parsley, cilantro and lettuce.
On social media, some users have nicknamed the health scare “lettuce-gate,” with one TikTok user asking whether anyone else was afraid to eat lettuce. Federal and state investigators are still working through the cases while the recall plays out.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.