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Reuters

US health authorities on Friday declared the ⁠nation’s largest recorded cyclosporiasis outbreak ⁠over, after contaminated iceberg lettuce sickened thousands, though ⁠the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it was still investigating how the parasite entered the food supply.
The outbreak, which federal investigators linked to lettuce from central Mexico sourced by Taylor Farms, prompted one of the largest food recalls in recent years and renewed scrutiny of food-safety controls for imported produce.
It also rattled consumer confidence, with some ‌shoppers avoiding raw fruits and vegetables as well as dining out, hurting foot traffic at restaurants such as Taco Bell, Sweetgreen and Chipotle.
According to data from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 12,883 people across 21 states fell ill after consuming contaminated lettuce.
The outbreak resulted in 570 hospitalisations and two deaths, and accounted for more than half of the 19,595 laboratory-confirmed US cyclosporiasis cases reported since May 1.

At the peak of the outbreak, before the recall, more than 1,000 infections ⁠were reported in a single day. In August, infections had fallen to fewer than two per day on average, the CDC said.
“I ‌don’t think that we have the necessary tools and technologies to stop outbreaks like this in the future,” said Donald Schaffner, a professor and extension specialist in food science at Rutgers University.
Schaffner called for ‌better strain-tracking tools and sustained funding for parasite research to prevent such outbreaks.
The FDA said on Friday it was ⁠confident that all recalled iceberg ⁠lettuce linked to the outbreak was off the market. The CDC said best-by dates for all products linked to the outbreak had passed and the lettuce would ‌no longer be available in shops or restaurants.
Taylor Farms recalled all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico on July 17.

The FDA also said it had completed on-site ‌inspections and collected ‌samples from lettuce farms and the processing facility in Mexico, with analysis pending, and would continue working with US, Mexican and ‌state partners.
“Our facility in central Mexico remains closed while the investigations by the FDA, our team, and independent experts are being completed,” ⁠Taylor Farms said in a statement.
Retailers Walmart, Whole Foods and restaurant chains Taco Bell (Yum Brands), Chipotle Mexican Grill and Sweetgreen did ⁠not respond to requests for comment. Target declined to comment.
Michigan, the state hardest hit by the outbreak, reported more than 14,000 cases and two deaths linked to the parasite, according to federal and state health officials. Ohio ‌and Missouri also saw thousands of ‌infections tied to contaminated lettuce from Taylor Farms.
Unusually high case totals from Michigan were attributed to a large backlog of reports processed in August, highlighting the strain on a system weakened by federal funding cuts under the Trump administration.
Before 2026, the largest US cyclosporiasis season on record was reported in 2019, when roughly 4,700 illnesses were documented nationwide.


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United States

US declares end to lettuce parasite outbreak that killed 2

Lettuce is displayed for sale at a grocery store in the US earlier this year. Photo: Reuters

A truck transports fresh produce after leaving a Taylor Farms facility in Guanajuato state, Mexico, in July. Photo: Reuters

Packages of Taylor Farms salad greens are seen for sale at a shop in Kings Beach, California, in July. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

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US President Donald Trump, with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jnr on his right, holds up a sign that reads “Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations” in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday. Photo: TNS

First deaths reported in US cyclosporiasis outbreak

Leaf lettuce at a grocery store. US health officials have linked some cyclospora cases to contaminated lettuce from Mexico. Photo: Reuters

News

World

United States & Canada

Nearly 13,000 people fell ill across 21 states in the nation’s largest recorded cyclosporiasis outbreak


Nearly 13,000 people fell ill across 21 states in the nation’s largest recorded cyclosporiasis outbreak.


Disease

Mexico

Food and agriculture

Yum! Brands

US declares end to lettuce parasite outbreak that killed 2

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Nearly 13,000 people fell ill across 21 states in the nation’s largest recorded cyclosporiasis outbreak

Nearly 13,000 people fell ill across 21 states in the nation’s largest recorded cyclosporiasis outbreak