UNBE-LEAF-ABLE

New Twist Deals Blow to Trump’s Lettuce Outbreak Probe

The investigation into the lettuce-linked cyclosporiasis outbreak has hit a snag.

A twist has emerged in the investigation into the cyclosporiasis outbreak that has sickened thousands of Americans.

Mexico’s health minister has pushed back against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s finding that the lettuce consumed by people who fell ill was sourced in central Mexico.

Last week, the FDA said its traceback investigation identified Taylor Farms de Mexico as the sole supplier to the Taco Bell locations where sick people ate shredded iceberg lettuce before getting sick. The company shortly announced a voluntary recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from Mexico from the U.S. market.

On Tuesday, however, Mexican Health Minister David Kershenobich said no evidence has been found showing that the produce originated from the central Mexican state of Guanajuato.

“So far, no evidence has been found to indicate that it originated there,” he said in a press conference. “However, we are taking all precautions in case that were the case.”

Mexican health officials have traveled to Guanajuato to take samples and conduct their own probe alongside the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to Kershenobich.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., meanwhile, sought to assure Americans that the cyclosporiasis outbreak is “under control.” He also rebuffed concerns that budget cuts have negatively impacted surveillance and the investigation.

“All the states will tell you that we’re still doing forensics. We’re still doing surveillance in all the states,” he said.

Cyclospora, an intestinal parasite, causes severe diarrhea, stomach pain, and nausea, among a laundry list of other symptoms. If left untreated, cyclosporiasis could lead to dehydration and severe complications that could last up to more than a month.

The illness has sickened more than 4,000 Americans across 41 states since it broke out on May 1, according to the CDC. There have been hundreds of hospitalizations but no deaths.

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The Trump administration’s investigation into the outbreak has hit snags before.

On July 18, the FDA reported that a sample of lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico tested positive for cyclospora. The following day, it said the result was actually a false positive.

“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,” it said.

Taylor Farms later said the “FDA apologized to us,” writing in a statement that “we were informed that FDA made a mistake, and this was a false positive.”

The rapid response X account of the Health and Human Services Department reposted the company’s statement with a clarification that there was no “walk back” from the FDA.

“There was ONE false-positive lab result for ONE shipment of Taylor Farms lettuce OUTSIDE the scope of the current recall. FDA notified Taylor Farms of that result,” it said. “FDA’s cyclospora investigation continues to point to shredded iceberg lettuce from a single supplier, Taylor Farms de Mexico.”

Taylor Fresh Foods Inc., the parent company of Taylor Farms, donated $1 million to Make America Great Again Inc. weeks after President Donald Trump returned to the White House in March 2025. The firm has also donated to Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, and other Republican candidates, as well as some Democratic candidates.

Taylor Farms hired former Trump White House official Trent Morse as a lobbyist. Its executives met with White House and FDA officials on July 16, a day before it issued the voluntary recall.

A Taylor Farms spokeswoman earlier told The New York Times that company representatives met with administration officials to discuss what it viewed as “shortfalls in the FDA and CDC’s outbreak response process” and ways to improve future public health responses.

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