Although shredded iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell restaurants has been a prime suspect in an explosive outbreak of the diarrheal parasite Cyclospora, a new report from the Food and Drug Administration finally reveals where all the contaminated lettuce was sold—and only a sliver of it went to Taco Bell locations.
The feces-tainted lettuce was sourced from Mexico and sold by Taylor Farms, a mammoth produce provider based in California. Taylor Farms has drawn scrutiny for its ties to the Trump administration and reluctance to provide information amid the outbreak, which has now sickened over 23,000 people across 47 states, killing two and sending over 500 others to the hospital. Taylor Farms reportedly attempted to delay issuing a recall amid the illnesses and, since then, has refused to clearly report how much tainted lettuce it recalled and where all of it had been shipped.
The FDA’s Enforcement Report finally provides some answers: Taylor Farms recalled 236,192 cases of lettuce due to potential Cyclospora contamination. Of those, only 5,900—just shy of 2.5 percent—were sold to Yum, the parent company of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC. The other 97.5 percent of the lettuce that potentially sickened Americans was distributed elsewhere.
Walmart—under its brand Marketside—received the lion’s share, 109,476 cases, a little over 46 percent. The second-largest lot went to Taylor Farms’ own brand, which received 68,897 cases, a little over 29 percent.
The remaining 25 percent went to various food service entities and two restaurants. Cross Valley Farms, a brand from US Foods with the tagline “Fresh Produce Sourced and Selected With Strict Standards,” received 19,016 cases (8 percent). Sysco received 11,519 cases (4.9 percent), Markon got 7,459 cases (3.15 percent), and Peak Fresh Produce (Performance Foodservice) got 720 cases (0.3 percent).
