Diarrhea parasite spreading in 41 states – with suspected cases topping 11,000… as officials continue to scramble to find the source
The ‘explosive diarrhea parasite’ cyclosporiasis is running rampant across the US, with thousands of additional cases pushing the outbreak to a record high.
The CDC said Tuesday that 4,173 laboratory-confirmed cases have been reported across 41 states.
However, officials warn the true toll could stretch past 11,000, as more than 7,400 additional reports are still awaiting laboratory confirmation and investigation.
Many of the newly reported cases have come from Michigan and Ohio, and local health departments are reporting more than 7,000 in those states alone. At least 308 people have been hospitalized.
Despite the spike in cases, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr called the multi-state outbreak ‘under control.’
‘We do have the outbreak under control,’ he told ABC News on Tuesday, marking one of the first times RFK Jr has spoken on the outbreak since it was being initially investigated.
‘We have an extensive forensics, epidemiological forensics, and we’ve identified the source of the outbreak. We and the companies that are involved have implemented a recall.’
His comments follow officials trying to scramble to find the source of the outbreak, as the FDA initially thought lettuce supplied by produce grower Taylor Farms was the culprit.
The FDA announced on Sunday that Taylor Farms’s lettuce returned a false-positive result for the parasite that causes the infection, cyclospora (stock image)
Yesterday, Taylor Farms said it had temporarily shut down the Central Mexico processing facility linked to the outbreak.
The facility produces five-pound bags of shredded iceberg lettuce sold to Taco Bell, Sysco and other large food distributors.
But the FDA said Sunday that Taylor Farms’s lettuce returned a false-positive result for the parasite that causes the infection, cyclospora.
Taylor Farms announced on Friday a recall of its lettuce grown in Mexico amid reports that the CDC and FDA were investigating the shredded lettuce supplied by the company to Taco Bell locations in the US as a potential source.
The company said none of its products were associated with the outbreak. However, ‘based on information provided yesterday by the FDA, Taylor Farms de Mexico is voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico.’
In its statement on Sunday, the FDA said a sample of lettuce supplied by the company had reported a positive cyclospora result on July 18.
However, ‘due to the complexity in detection of cyclospora, FDA laboratory experts re-reviewed the sample results and have concluded that the finding does not represent true amplification and should be considered a false positive.’
The statement continued: ‘FDA has notified Taylor Farms and continues working with the firm to ensure product implicated in this outbreak has been removed from the market. FDA and state partners continue to collect and analyze product samples.
No update was given for Taco Bell’s potential role in the outbreak, as the fast food chain’s lettuce supplier is Taylor Farms
Social media users reported that some Olive Garden locations temporarily stopped serving their salads in the midst of the outbreak (file photo)
‘As of July 19, 2026, there are no confirmed positive sample results for product testing for cyclospora.’
Following the FDA’s announcement, Taylor Farms said in a statement on Sunday: ‘Yesterday, FDA informed Taylor Fresh Foods that one of its iceberg lettuce products from central Mexico had a “confirmed positive” test for cyclospora.
‘Today, we were informed that FDA made a mistake, and this was a false positive. To be clear, at this moment, FDA has not identified a single positive product test result for cyclospora.’
No update was given for Taco Bell’s potential role in the outbreak, as the fast food chain’s lettuce supplier is Taylor Farms. The fast food chain did announce earlier this month it would no longer be serving lettuce in some of its menu items.
Another popular restaurant has also begun pulling produce from menus as the parasite spreads. Social media users reported that some Olive Garden locations temporarily stopped serving their salads.
The US Sun contacted one Olive Garden restaurant, which confirmed it temporarily paused its pre-dinner salads over the weekend. The location has since resumed serving them using whole lettuce chopped in-house instead of bagged lettuce.
It remains unclear who supplies Olive Garden’s lettuce. So far, Taco Bell is the only restaurant identified in the FDA and CDC investigation.
