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The FDA found Cyclospora in two environmental samples collected in Mexico: wastewater at Taylor Farms de Mexico’s processing facility and a drainage ditch at a grower’s farm. The samples add evidence connecting recalled iceberg lettuce from the operation to a summer outbreak, but the agency says it cannot yet determine how contamination occurred or how the samples relate genetically to patient specimens.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found Cyclospora in two samples collected at a Taylor Farms de Mexico lettuce processing facility and a contract grower’s farm in Mexico, adding environmental evidence to the investigation of a summer outbreak linked to recalled iceberg lettuce. The agency said the results show the parasite was present in places where lettuce was processed and grown, but do not establish how the lettuce became contaminated.
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 during the FDA’s traceback investigation. The agency said it sampled water, soil, sediment and iceberg lettuce during inspections at multiple growers and the processing facility, working with Mexican officials. Two samples tested positive.
The FDA’s findings, announced October 2, add to epidemiological evidence and traceback results linking the outbreak to recalled shredded iceberg lettuce from the Taylor Farms operation in central Mexico. The lettuce was distributed by Taylor Fresh Foods. The investigation first connected patients to the company’s iceberg lettuce in July, after people who ate menu items containing the lettuce at Taco Bell restaurants began falling ill.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counted 12,883 people sickened, 570 hospitalizations and two deaths in the outbreak. Those are the CDC’s reported totals. The agency said September 11 that the outbreak had ended. The FDA has completed genotyping of the two environmental samples, but is still comparing those results with ongoing genetic analysis of specimens from outbreak patients.
New Samples Strengthen Lettuce Link
The positive samples give investigators direct evidence that Cyclospora was present in the growing and processing environment tied to the recalled lettuce. That matters because the outbreak affected thousands of people across the country and included hundreds of hospitalizations and two deaths. Environmental findings can help public health officials assess where contamination may have occurred and what controls may need attention.
The results add to, rather than replace, the epidemiological and traceback evidence. The FDA has not said that either positive sample contained the outbreak strain or established a route by which the parasite reached lettuce eaten by consumers. Until the genetic comparison and further analysis are complete, the samples support the investigation’s link to the operation without resolving the precise chain of contamination.
For consumers, the outbreak’s reported end means the CDC no longer considers it ongoing. The FDA findings concern evidence collected as part of the investigation; they do not announce a new outbreak. The case remains relevant to food safety because it involves contamination evidence at both a processing site and a farm drainage area, and because investigators have not publicly identified the exact source or pathway.
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From Restaurant Cases to Farm Samples
The investigation began drawing attention in July, when illness reports among people who had eaten Taco Bell menu items containing iceberg lettuce pointed investigators toward the restaurant’s lettuce supply. The chain sourced the lettuce from Taylor Farms. FDA traceback work subsequently identified several farms and a processing facility in Mexico that supplied recalled lettuce distributed by Taylor Fresh Foods.
As part of that work, FDA investigators conducted onsite inspections and collected samples at multiple iceberg lettuce growers and the processing facility, in coordination with Mexican officials. The sample types included water, soil, sediment and lettuce. The positive wastewater and drainage ditch samples were environmental findings; the FDA has not stated that the tested material was itself served to customers.
The CDC reported the outbreak had ended on September 11. Food Safety News published its account of the FDA findings on October 2 and updated it on October 4. The FDA said its sample genotyping was complete, while analysis comparing those results with patient specimens remained underway.
“The agency said there was not enough evidence to conclusively determine how contamination occurred.”
— U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Contamination Route Remains Unknown
The FDA said there is not enough evidence to conclusively determine how contamination occurred. The agency has not publicly established whether Cyclospora moved from the wastewater tank or drainage ditch to lettuce, or whether another route was involved. A positive result at an operation or nearby growing environment identifies the parasite’s presence in the sampled location; by itself, it does not show when or how food became contaminated.
Although genotyping of both environmental samples is complete, the FDA is still analyzing how those results relate to genotyping of specimens from people who became ill. The source account does not report a completed genetic match. It is therefore not yet clear whether the environmental samples are genetically linked to the outbreak cases.
The available report also does not specify when the samples were collected, how many total samples were tested, or the exact distribution of illnesses among locations. The CDC’s totals establish the reported scale of the outbreak, but further details about the contamination pathway and the relationship between environmental and patient samples remain unresolved.
FDA Continues Genetic Comparison
The FDA’s next stated step is to continue comparing the genotyping results from the two positive environmental samples with results from outbreak patient specimens. That analysis may help investigators determine whether the samples are related to the illnesses. The agency has not announced when the comparison will be complete or what further findings it expects to release.
Taylor Fresh Foods told ABC News that the central Mexico facility remained closed while it worked with its research team on enhanced safety protocols. The spokesperson also said the grower where the positive sample was found had left the company’s supplier program. The source material does not give a reopening date or describe the protocols in detail.
With the outbreak reported over, the public health focus is on completing the investigation and clarifying what the environmental findings establish. Any further FDA or CDC update could address the genetic comparison, the contamination pathway, or additional corrective actions. Until then, the agency’s stated conclusion remains that the positive samples show Cyclospora in the environment where lettuce was grown and processed, while the way contamination occurred is undetermined.
Key Questions
Where did the FDA find Cyclospora?
It found the parasite in a wastewater tank at the Taylor Farms de Mexico processing facility and in a drainage ditch at an iceberg lettuce grower’s farm in Mexico.
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.
Did the FDA determine how the lettuce was contaminated?
No. The agency said the evidence is insufficient to conclusively determine how contamination occurred.
Are the positive samples genetically linked to patients?
The FDA completed genotyping of the two samples but said it was still analyzing how those results relate to genotyping of specimens from outbreak patients.
What did Taylor Fresh Foods say about the facility and grower?
A spokesperson told ABC News that the central Mexico facility remained closed while the company worked on enhanced safety protocols, and that the grower where a positive sample was found was no longer in its supplier program.
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