After thousands of foodborne illnesses this year, the produce giant will suspend some harvesting and processing during peak summer months
By Jesse Newman
Taylor Farms, the produce giant linked to last summer's deadly cyclospora outbreak, is suspending sales of iceberg lettuce from central Mexico during the parasite's peak season.
Chief Executive Bruce Taylor said the company won't sell iceberg lettuce in the U.S. or Canada that was harvested or processed in the region between May 1 and Aug. 31, starting next year. The period covers central Mexico's rainy season, Taylor said, and it matches the time when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sees an increase in illnesses caused by the cyclospora parasite.
The company hasn't determined when the suspension will be lifted.
Taylor's comments in an open letter Thursday come days after the Food and Drug Administration released details from its investigation into what became the largest U.S. cyclospora outbreak on record, which sickened 12,000 people and was linked to two deaths. The parasitic outbreak touched every part of the produce industry as many consumers avoided fresh produce in grocery stores and salad-heavy restaurant chains.
To date, neither the FDA nor Taylor Farms has publicly identified what caused the cyclospora outbreak.
Federal and state authorities probed several cyclospora outbreaks last summer. They tied the largest one to shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms, which supplies produce to some of America's biggest retailers and restaurant brands, including Walmart, Costco and Yum Brands' Taco Bell.
Taylor Farms suspended sourcing and production of iceberg lettuce from central Mexico in July. The company said its processing facility in the region remains closed.
In response to the outbreak Taylor said it is also expanding year-round health monitoring for its staff and workers at farms where it sources lettuce. The company is boosting testing of its irrigation water and crops in central Mexico, and investing in research and technology to improve cyclospora detection and prevention, he said.
"We are taking a comprehensive approach to make our food even safer," Taylor said.
Public health officials declared the cyclospora outbreak over in September. Last week, the FDA said that it had closed its outbreak investigation after conducting inspections in Mexican lettuce fields -- taking samples of water, soil, sediment and lettuce -- as well as at Taylor Farms' processing facility in Mexico.
The FDA said two samples tested positive for cyclospora, one from a tank containing wastewater from the processing facility and another from a drainage ditch at a lettuce grower.
The agency outlined steps that it will take to prevent cyclospora ahead of the 2027 growing season, including increased surveillance of certain agricultural commodities. The FDA also said it is exploring new tools to monitor environmental factors like weather events.
Taylor Farms said it is no longer working with the independent grower where the positive sample was found. The company said the second sample came from waste and sewer water outside of its processing facility and was taken over three weeks after the company suspended production.
Some current and former government officials have criticized the handling of the outbreak, both by the Trump administration and Taylor Farms. Frank Yiannas, a former FDA deputy commissioner, said the agency was too slow to get to Mexico and that its findings leave many unanswered questions.
"We are really good at detecting outbreaks but really lousy at investigating them," Yiannas said.
Consumer Reports, a nonprofit organization, sent a letter Thursday to the FDA expressing concern over the agency's outbreak response and requesting answers to a series of questions next month.