FDA Sticks With Taylor Farms After Cyclospora False Positive
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- FDA officials said they remain focused on lettuce from Taylor Farms as the source of the multistate cyclospora outbreak, even after retracting a false-positive lab result posted Saturday and corrected Sunday.
- Taylor Farms recalled 25 shredded lettuce and salad mix products sold under eight brand codes on Saturday, and FDA's traceback converges on shredded iceberg lettuce from the company's locations in central Mexico, according to acting food chief Donald Prater.
- The agencies are investigating five separate cyclospora clusters in 2026, with at least 1,645 people sickened and 141 hospitalized; new cases tied to the latest outbreak were reported as recently as last week, per acting FDA Commissioner Kyle Diamantas.
- Taco Bell foot traffic dropped 18.9% after being named in the investigation, per Placer.ai, with Chopt down 14.3%, Chipotle and Panera both around 7%, and Cava off 4.2%.
- Taylor Farms posted on social media claiming the "FDA apologized to us"; agency officials said there was no official apology.
- FDA staff have begun testing produce samples crossing the U.S. border, though investigators say cyclospora cannot be grown in labs, forcing reliance on patient food-history accounts rather than direct biological proof.
Why it matters: With 1,645 sickened in 2026 and new cases still emerging as recently as last week, fast-food chains named in the investigation are already paying a price—Taco Bell foot traffic dropped nearly 19%—while the FDA's retracted false-positive shows how hard it is to biologically confirm contamination in a lab.
