Food safety
FDA detects cyclospora at Mexican farm linked to lettuce outbreak
FDA found cyclospora in a wastewater tank and drainage ditch at the Taylor Farms site, but said it remains unclear how lettuce became contaminated.
The FDA said inspectors found cyclospora in two places at a Mexican farm linked to a lettuce outbreak that caused nearly 13,000 cases of diarrhea and other illnesses across the U.S. The agency said the samples provide “strong epidemiological data” linking the outbreak to the Taylor Farms site, but it remains unclear how the parasite got into lettuce there.
The FDA said the findings were from a wastewater tank and a drainage ditch used for lettuce cultivation, and that it has closed its investigation. Taylor Farms attributed the contamination cited by the FDA to an independent grower no longer in its supplier program. The company said its facility remains closed in central Mexico while it works with its research team on enhanced safety protocols. Mexico’s food safety authority announced in August that its investigation did not detect cyclospora in lettuce or water at the facility.
