Walmart Pulls Lettuce Linked to Cyclospora Outbreak

Walmart stores in 27 states sold Taylor Farms-supplied lettuce that’s now being pulled over a potential link to a cyclosporiasis outbreak.

The retailer has removed some bags of Marketside Bagged Iceberg Salad and Shredded Iceberg Salad, the company said in a statement to USA TODAY.

So far there have been no confirmed illnesses associated with the products, according to Walmart. “We are working closely with our supplier and took immediate steps to remove the products from sale,” the company’s statement said.

“The health and safety of our customers is a top priority,” the company’s statement read. “Although there is no indication that products sold in our stores are affected by the current Cyclospora investigations, we have removed four bagged iceberg lettuce salad products from select locations as a precaution after receiving notice from our supplier.”

Walmart Follows Taco Bell in Removing Potentially Tainted Lettuce

Walmart’s action comes after Taco Bell said Friday, July 17, that it has removed all lettuce supplied from Taylor Farms from its restaurants. Lettuce provided by a single supplier and served at Taco Bell restaurants in five states – Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia – had been linked to the ongoing outbreak of the parasitic infection, the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday, July 16.

The CDC reported Friday that its investigation found Taco Bell customers had gotten sick after consuming shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico contaminated with cyclospora, a microscopic parasite that infects the intestinal tract and can cause prolonged diarrhea.

Thousands have been sickened by cyclosporiasis across the country. In Michigan alone, more than 5,000 cases have been reported, with 102 hospitalized as of July 16, according to the state health department.

It is likely more restaurants and retailers received potentially tainted lettuce. Taylor Farms de Mexico of Guanajuato, Mexico, a subsidiary of the Salinas, California-headquartered company, listed 27 states – the same list as on Walmart’s removal notice – that received central Mexico-sourced iceberg lettuce, shredded lettuce, salad mixes and other products in a July 17 update on the FDA website.

The company said it had notified customers and was removing the implicated products, as well as suspending processing and distribution of iceberg lettuce from Central Mexico.

Sysco, the nation’s largest food distributor, said Friday it was also removing iceberg lettuce sourced from Mexico, Reuters reported.

Walmart Stores in These States Got Recalled Taylor Farms Lettuce

A food recall notice on the Walmart website details that Taylor Fresh Foods recalled iceberg lettuce from central Mexico because of a possible health risk, and that the lettuce was sold at select Walmart stores.

These are the recalled lettuce products:

UPCDescription681131328944Marketside Bagged Iceberg Salad, 12 oz.681131328951Marketside Bagged Iceberg Salad, 24 oz.681131328968Marketside Bagged Shredded Iceberg Salad, 8 oz.681131532099Marketside Bagged Shredded Iceberg Salad, 16 oz.

The products were sold at select locations in the following states:

Alabama
Arkansas
Connecticut
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Missouri
Mississippi
New Hampshire
New Jersey
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Wisconsin

Customers who purchased these products should not consume them and should discard them or return them to their local Walmart store for a full refund, the company said. Customers with questions may contact Walmart Customer Service at 1-800-925-6278.

Where Did Taylor Farms Lettuce From Central Mexico Go?

Nearly all of the listed recalled lettuce products were sent to food service destinations such as restaurants. Neither the FDA notice nor the Taylor Farms recall notice listed specific retailers or restaurants that received the lettuce.

“While the FDA traceback is indicating a specific independent farm that represents less than 1% of the U.S.’s iceberg lettuce supply as the potential source of the outbreak, we have removed all iceberg lettuce from the region indefinitely,” Taylor Farms said in a July 17 statement.

USA TODAY reached out to numerous restaurant chains and retailers for comment.

Two years ago, Taylor Farms was linked to an E. coli outbreak involving onions served at McDonald’s.

Contributing: Eve Chen and Sara Moniuszko.