FDA issues urgent warning: Don't eat Taco Bell lettuce in 5 states

[riversedge]

Source: Detroit Free Press



Kristen Jordan Shamus Updated Thu, July 16, 2026 at 9:01 PM CDT


The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an urgent update to its investigation of a widespread outbreak of cyclosporiasis late in the evening of Thursday, July 16, warning people in five states to avoid eating lettuce from Taco Bell restaurants.

"Consumers should avoid eating shredded iceberg lettuce from Mexico at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia," the federal agency said on its website, adding that its search remains ongoing into potential sources of the parasitic gastrointestinal illness that has infected more than 4,000 people in Michigan alone — and thousands of others nationally.

"Additional states may be added to this advisory as more information becomes available," the FDA said. "Taco Bell is working to stop use of all lettuce implicated by this investigation. Not all Taco Bell locations in these states received implicated product."

Public health investigators have epidemiologically tied infections in 1,644 people in those five states after exposure to food from Taco Bell, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is working in collaboration with the FDA and state and local health departments.

The illnesses all began between May 13 and July 13. Among them, 94 people were hospitalized.


Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/taco-bell-pulls-lettuce-u-020130260.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

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FDA issues urgent warning: Don't eat Taco Bell lettuce in 5 states

In Michigan alone, 4,312 people have been sickened since June 22, and more than 100 people have been hospitalized. Cases also have been reported in 33 other states nationally,

www.yahoo.com/news/us/arti...

— (@oceancalm.bsky.social) 2026-07-17T08:38:05.511Z

[Karasu]

1. You're better off not eating it anywhere as long as Republicans remain in power deregulating fucking everything.

[LizfromRI]

2. Taylor Farms is huge

Taylor Farms supplies many chain/fast food restaurants including McDonald's, KFC, Subway, and many more. They are the biggest supplier in North America using smaller sub-farms as their source. They will probably have to investigate further to find the farm that's the culprit. Although with this administration I doubt that will happen. Just my opinion.

[yardwork]

13. I'm suspicious that they're targeting "lettuce from Mexico" and Taco Bell.

That sounds like politics to me. It aligns too well with the anti-immigration hysteria.

Online MAGAts are blaming immigrants for measles.

TrumpCo caused crises then blames immigrants.

[LeftInTX]

24. NAFTA is supposed to assure these outbreaks don't happen.

We import huge amts of produce from Mexico.

However, despite the fact that they have water sanitation issues (everyone who lives in MX drinks bottled water and we're told to stay away from fresh salads). Yet the imported produce that makes it here is like 99.9% safe.

This is from earlier this year
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/importalert_1148.html
Fresh cilantro as a source from this particular farm in Puebla isn't going to be cause widespread illness like packaged lettuce will. And it's probably easier to pinpoint the source and has smaller geographical distribution market in the US. So, they put a halt on cilantro from certain farms in Puebla.

Taylor Farms has production in MX.

I don't see this as swipe at immigration. I see it as a failure of USDA inspections.

[Bengus81]

3. Taco Bell...where you can still get gas for $2.50

[RANDYWILDMAN]

19. 2.50 try $10 and we got the diarrhea in Oregon

last week, will not be going there again anytime soon

[paleotn]

4. Why am I not surprised. It was Taco Hell all along. It's always Taco Hell.

Long history dating back to my undergrad years. My old compadres would get it.

[AZLD4Candidate]

5. FDA issues urgent warning: Don't eat Taco Bell ever (fixed)

[mwmisses4289]

6. Haven't eaten there in years.

Something in their seasonings always made us sick. There were better places to get the same thing- maybe a bit more expensive, but worth it.

[Tree Lady]

20. I stopped eating all fast food places 25

Years ago, never felt good after eating it and quality had gone way down. I remember as a kid when McDonalds had real beef. Slime no thank you!

[FakeNoose]

7. Taco Bell needs to find another supplier for their lettuce

They should have stopped immediately when they got the news over a week ago. Now they've lost customers all over the country....

[yardwork]

14. Why do you believe the Trump administration?

Genuine question.

[angrychair]

8. I think a thing that gets left out

Is that Cyclospora contamination is spread through contaminated human poop.
The only this happens is that Taylor Farms is spraying their crops with untreated human shit.

[Danascot]

9. Back in my day

we didn't need Cyclospora to get explosive diarrhea from Taco Bell.

[mdbl]

10. Bad day for Yum Brands.

[littlemissmartypants]

11. When I eat lettuce, I eat little leaf farms.

❤️🌞

[DownriverDem]

12. Too Late

My husband and I have been suffering from the virus. We had classic tacos a couple of weeks ago. So between this and the smoke we are really not having fun.

[yardwork]

15. I'm so sorry that you are sick.

How long after you ate the tacos was it before you felt symptoms?

[Felicita]

18. Cyclospora is a protozoan

Not a virus, just to make sure the info is correct so you know what you're dealing with. Hope you feel better soon!

[Prairie Gates]

16. "Not all Taco Bell locations in these states received implicated product"

Motherfucker I won't even eat a raspberry - you think on gambling on which Taco Bell location is implicated?



(Disclaimer: I haven't eaten anything from any Taco Bell in close to 30 years).

[Bayard]

17. Sent the alert to friends and family in KY and IN.

[Raftergirl]

21. I thought I read that Taco Bell had pulled lettuce from all menu items. And the lettuce didn't come from

Mexico.

[2na fisherman]

23. Taco Bowel

Re-branding now.