FDA Found Cyclospora At Taylor Farms Lettuce Operation

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The FDA reported finding Cyclospora in a wastewater tank 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 the investigation of a summer outbreak linked by epidemiological and traceback data to recalled Taylor Farms shredded iceberg lettuce, but the agency says it cannot yet determine how contamination occurred.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found Cyclospora in two environmental samples collected in Mexico at sites tied to Taylor Farms lettuce production, adding evidence to an investigation of a summer outbreak linked to the company’s recalled shredded iceberg lettuce. The agency said the results show the parasite was present in environments where lettuce was processed and grown, but do not establish how contamination occurred.

One positive sample came from a tank holding outgoing wastewater at the Taylor Farms de Mexico processing facility in Central Mexico. The second came from a drainage ditch at an iceberg lettuce grower identified through the FDA’s traceback investigation. The agency said inspectors collected samples of water, soil, sediment and lettuce during visits to multiple growers and the processing facility, working with Mexican officials.

The outbreak sickened 12,883 people, according to the report of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s count. The CDC also counted 570 hospitalizations and two deaths. It reported on September 11 that the outbreak had ended. The FDA’s findings were announced October 2, with the report last updated October 4.

The FDA said genotyping of both environmental samples has been completed, but it is still analyzing how those results compare with ongoing genotyping of specimens from outbreak patients. The agency said there is not enough evidence to conclusively identify how the contamination happened. Its findings add environmental evidence to what it described as strong epidemiological data and traceback convergence linking the outbreak to recalled shredded iceberg lettuce from the Taylor Farms operation in Central Mexico.

Evidence at Lettuce Production Sites

The results matter because investigators detected Cyclospora at two locations in the lettuce supply chain under examination: wastewater at a processing facility and a drainage ditch at a grower’s farm. That establishes the parasite’s presence in those sampled environments, though it does not show that either sample contaminated lettuce or identify a route by which the parasite reached food.

The outbreak’s scale—12,883 reported illnesses, along with hospitalizations and deaths—underscores the public-health stakes of tracing a foodborne illness to its source. The FDA findings may help investigators test the connection between environmental samples and patient infections. Until that analysis is complete, the results strengthen the investigation’s evidence without answering precisely where or when contamination occurred.

How Investigators Traced the Lettuce

Initial links between the outbreak and Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce emerged in July, after people who ate at Taco Bell restaurants became ill. The affected menu items contained iceberg lettuce that the chain sourced from Taylor Farms, according to the report. The FDA’s traceback work then identified multiple farms and a Mexican processing facility that supplied recalled lettuce distributed by Taylor Fresh Foods.

The FDA conducted onsite inspections and sampling at several iceberg lettuce growers and at the processing facility in coordination with Mexican officials. Its work included collecting samples of water, soil, sediment and lettuce. The two positive results came from environmental samples, not from a reported positive sample of lettuce. The distinction is important: the results show Cyclospora in the sampled environments, while the report does not say that investigators detected it on a specific lettuce product in those tests.

“There is currently not enough evidence to conclusively determine how contamination occurred in the outbreak.”

— U.S. Food and Drug Administration

How Contamination Occurred

The FDA has not determined how Cyclospora entered the lettuce supply chain, whether the positive environmental samples are genetically connected to the outbreak cases, or whether either sampled site directly contaminated lettuce. Although genotyping of the two environmental samples is complete, the agency said comparison with patient specimens is still underway.

The report identifies one positive sample at a wastewater tank and another at a grower’s drainage ditch. It does not establish when the parasite reached those environments, whether contamination was present on any particular shipment, or whether the two findings share a source. The outbreak has been reported ended, but the investigation’s source analysis remains incomplete.

Genotyping and Facility Status

The FDA’s next stated step is to continue comparing the completed genotyping results from the two positive environmental samples with results from outbreak-patient specimens. That analysis may clarify whether the samples are related to the illnesses, though the agency has not announced when it expects to finish or what conclusions it may reach.

Taylor Fresh Foods told ABC News that the Central Mexico facility remains closed while the company works on enhanced safety protocols. The spokesperson also said the grower with the positive sample is no longer in the company’s supplier program. The source material does not give a reopening date or further details about the protocols. The FDA has not yet publicly resolved the route of contamination.

Key Questions

Where did the FDA find Cyclospora?

In two environmental samples in Mexico: one from an outgoing-wastewater tank at the Taylor Farms de Mexico processing facility and one from a drainage ditch at an iceberg lettuce grower identified in the investigation.

Did the FDA find Cyclospora on lettuce?

The report describes two positive environmental samples, from wastewater and a drainage ditch. It does not report a positive result from a lettuce sample.

Did investigators prove how the outbreak happened?

No. The FDA said there is not enough evidence to conclusively determine how contamination occurred. It is still comparing genotyping results from the environmental samples with results from outbreak patients.

How large was the outbreak?

The report cites CDC counts of 12,883 illnesses, 570 hospitalizations and two deaths. The CDC reported on September 11 that the outbreak had ended.

Is the Taylor Farms Mexico facility open?

A Taylor Fresh Foods spokesperson told ABC News that the Central Mexico facility remains closed while the company works on enhanced safety protocols. The report does not provide a reopening date.

Source: rss