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FDA sampling found Cyclospora in wastewater at Taylor Farms de Mexico’s lettuce processing facility and in a drainage ditch at a contract grower’s farm. The findings add environmental evidence to epidemiological and traceback links between recalled Taylor Farms shredded iceberg lettuce and an outbreak that sickened 12,883 people, but FDA says it cannot yet determine how contamination occurred.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found Cyclospora in two environmental samples collected at a Taylor Farms lettuce processing operation in Central Mexico and a contract grower’s farm, adding evidence to an investigation of an outbreak linked to the company’s shredded iceberg lettuce. The outbreak sickened 12,883 people, led to 570 hospitalizations and caused two deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the CDC reported it ended on September 11.
The FDA said one positive sample came from a tank holding outgoing wastewater at the Taylor Farms de Mexico processing facility. The other was collected from a drainage ditch at an iceberg lettuce grower identified in the agency’s traceback investigation. FDA sampling in Mexico included water, soil, sediment and lettuce, and was conducted during onsite inspections at multiple growers and the processing facility in coordination with Mexican officials.
The agency said the findings show Cyclospora was present in the environment where lettuce was grown and processed. They add to epidemiological evidence and traceback findings connecting the outbreak to recalled shredded iceberg lettuce from the Taylor Farms operation. However, the positive environmental samples alone do not establish that either sample contaminated lettuce eaten by outbreak patients.
The FDA said genotyping of both positive samples is complete, but it is still analyzing how their results relate to ongoing genotyping of specimens from people who became ill. The agency said there is not enough evidence to determine conclusively how contamination occurred. A Taylor Fresh Foods spokesperson told ABC News that the Central Mexico facility remains closed while the company works with its research team on enhanced safety protocols. The spokesperson also said the independent grower where a positive sample was found is no longer in the company’s supplier program.
What the Findings Add to the Outbreak Case
Finding the parasite at locations tied to lettuce production makes the investigation’s environmental evidence more concrete. The samples connect Cyclospora to places involved in growing and processing the lettuce under investigation, while the patient data and traceback work had already pointed toward recalled product from the Taylor Farms operation. Taken together, those strands support the link described by the FDA, though they do not identify the precise route of contamination.
The scale of the outbreak gives the findings public-health weight: 12,883 reported illnesses, 570 hospitalizations and two deaths were counted by the CDC. Those totals describe the outbreak, not the number of people exposed at any single farm or facility. The outbreak has ended, according to the CDC, but the FDA’s continuing analysis may inform how investigators understand the event and what safeguards are needed at the affected operation.
The company-reported closure and supplier change are also relevant to consumers and food businesses watching the response. The spokesperson’s account indicates the facility is not operating while enhanced protocols are being developed, but the source material does not provide independent details about the closure’s start date, inspection status or conditions for reopening.
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How Investigators Traced the Lettuce
The initial public link emerged in July, when people who ate at Taco Bell restaurants began reporting illness. Those patients had eaten menu items containing iceberg lettuce, which the restaurant chain sourced from Taylor Farms, according to the report. Subsequent FDA traceback work identified several farms and a processing facility in Mexico that supplied lettuce later recalled and distributed by Taylor Fresh Foods.
The FDA’s investigation included onsite inspections and sample collection at multiple iceberg lettuce growers and the processing facility, with Mexican officials involved. The two positive samples were among those collected during those inspections. Their locations differ: one was at the processing site, in a tank for outgoing wastewater, and the other was at a grower’s drainage ditch.
On September 11, the CDC reported that the outbreak had ended. The FDA’s environmental findings were announced October 2 and reported by Food Safety News, whose article was updated October 4. The outbreak’s end does not resolve the source question: the FDA said its evidence supports a connection to recalled lettuce, while the specific contamination mechanism remains undetermined.
“There is currently not enough evidence to conclusively determine how contamination occurred in the outbreak.”
— U.S. Food and Drug Administration
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The Route of Contamination Is Unknown
The FDA has not established how Cyclospora reached the lettuce, whether either positive environmental sample was directly connected to the lettuce eaten by patients, or where in the supply chain contamination may have occurred. A positive sample in outgoing wastewater and one in a drainage ditch indicate the parasite’s presence at sampled sites; they do not, on their own, show that the lettuce itself tested positive or explain how people were exposed.
Although genotyping of the two environmental samples is complete, the FDA said it is still comparing those results with genotyping of specimens from outbreak patients. The supplied information does not report whether the environmental and patient samples match, nor does it give a timetable for the remaining analysis. It also does not specify when the facility might reopen or which enhanced protocols the company is developing.
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Genotyping and Facility Status
The FDA’s next reported step is to continue comparing the completed genotyping results from the two environmental samples with results from outbreak-patient specimens. That analysis may help investigators assess how closely the environmental findings relate to the illnesses, although no conclusion or completion date has been provided.
The company spokesperson said the Central Mexico processing facility remains closed while Taylor Fresh Foods works on enhanced safety protocols, and that the grower with the positive sample is no longer a supplier. The source material does not state when the FDA or Mexican authorities will provide another update, what conditions would permit the facility to resume operations, or whether further sampling is planned. The CDC has reported the outbreak ended, while the investigation’s account of how contamination occurred remains open.
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Key Questions
Where did the FDA find Cyclospora?
The FDA reported one positive sample from a tank holding outgoing wastewater at Taylor Farms de Mexico’s processing facility and another from a drainage ditch at an iceberg lettuce grower identified in the traceback investigation.
Did the FDA prove that the samples caused the outbreak?
No. The findings show Cyclospora was present in the environment at sites involved in lettuce production and processing, and add to epidemiological and traceback evidence linking the outbreak to recalled Taylor Farms lettuce. The FDA said it lacks enough evidence to determine conclusively how contamination occurred.
How large was the outbreak?
The CDC counted 12,883 illnesses, 570 hospitalizations and two deaths. It reported on September 11 that the outbreak had ended.
Is the Taylor Farms facility still operating?
A Taylor Fresh Foods spokesperson told ABC News that the Central Mexico facility remains closed while the company works on enhanced safety protocols. The supplied report does not give a reopening date or the conditions for resuming operations.
What evidence is the FDA still reviewing?
The FDA said genotyping of the two environmental samples is complete, while analysis comparing those results with specimens from outbreak patients is continuing. The agency has not reported a match or provided a timeline for that work.
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