Taylor Farms removes iceberg lettuce sourced from Mexico amid diarrhea outbreak
Taylor Farms is removing iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico, the company said in a social media post, after multiple reports citing unnamed sources linked Taylor Farms lettuce to a multi-state cyclosporiasis outbreak.
In a statement posted Friday, Taylor Farms said, "Based on information provided yesterday by the FDA, Taylor Farms de Mexico is voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico."
No Taylor Farms branded salads or kits are associated with this outbreak, the statement added.
USA TODAY has reached out to Taylor Farms, HHS, FDA and CDC for comment.
After thousands have been sickened by cyclosporiasis across the country, federal health officials said lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants had been linked to an outbreak of the stomach-churning parasitic infection.
An investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and state health officials linked shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia to an outbreak.
The FDA's traceback investigation had identified a single supplier of iceberg lettuce from Mexico used by these Taco Bell locations, the agencies said late Thursday, July 16.
Taylor Farms lists 'no active product recalls'
As of Friday, Taylor Farms' website says, "There are no active product recalls in place for any Taylor Farms products," but that was last updated on July 14.
"At Taylor Farms, the health and safety of our consumers is always our top priority," the site adds. "We are committed to delivering fresh, wholesome products that meet the highest quality standards. In the rare event a product does not meet these standards, we take immediate action to remove affected items from distribution and notify our customers."
USA TODAY has reached out to Taylor Farms.
What food safety experts are saying
Before it was confirmed by USA TODAY, many food safety experts suspected Taylor Farms was involved in the outbreak, because the produce company supplies Taco Bell. These experts were in attendance at the Food Safety Latam Summit 2026, held July 15 to 16 in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico.
"Of course, the topic of conversation was when somebody was going to leak that it was Taylor Farms, and then the question is whether or not the lettuce came from Mexico or from Salinas," food safety lawyer Bill Marler told USA TODAY.
"Basically everyone down here was like, it's Taylor Farms because they're big and they supply Taco Bell. I was actually waiting for somebody in public health to say that," said Marler, who on July 16 filed a lawsuit in federal court in the northern district of Ohio on behalf of a man who said he became infected with Cyclospora after dining at Taco Bell on June 14 and June 21 in North Olmsted, Ohio.
The gastrointestinal illness, which can cause frequent, watery diarrhea or explosive bowel movements, nausea, cramps, bloating and low-grade fever, has sickened people in 34 states.
Contributing: Reuters; Eve Chen, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Taylor Farms removes iceberg lettuce sourced from Mexico amid diarrhea outbreak
Reporting by Sara Moniuszko and Mike Snider, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published July 17, 2026 at 3:02 PM.