The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared over a cyclospora outbreak linked to Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico, after 12,883 reported cases across 21 states, 570 hospitalisations and two deaths.
The agency said Friday that people no longer face a risk of cyclosporiasis from this outbreak. It said it was confident that all iceberg lettuce connected to the cases had been removed from the market and that the contaminated product was no longer available in shops or restaurants.
The scale of the outbreak makes its closure a significant public-health milestone. Michigan recorded the highest number of reported cases and both US deaths. At the outbreak's peak, more than 1,000 infections were reported in a single day. By August, the CDC said the average had fallen to fewer than two reported infections a day.
Since May 1, the government has received reports of nearly 20,000 laboratory-confirmed cases. That figure is more than 16 times the number reported during the same period last year. More than 6,100 suspected cases were also reported.
The previous worst year for cyclospora infections in the US was 2019, when about 4,700 illnesses were reported nationally. The CDC's current outbreak total is 12,883 cases across 21 states.
The outbreak was linked to iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico from central Mexico. Taco Bell removed the affected Taylor Farms lettuce. Taylor Farms de Mexico recalled all of its iceberg lettuce from the region on July 17.
The CDC's declaration ends the immediate consumer warning, though major questions about the contamination remain unresolved. The Food and Drug Administration said its investigation is continuing. The agency did not inspect the Mexican farm implicated in the outbreak until about a month after its investigation began.
The reason for the contamination, the route by which the parasite entered the lettuce supply, and the results of pending analysis from FDA on-site inspections remain unknown. It is also unclear whether weaknesses in food-safety protocols contributed to the outbreak's size.
Cyclosporiasis symptoms usually begin about a week after someone eats contaminated food or drinks contaminated water, although illness can start as early as two days or as late as two weeks after exposure. Frequent, watery diarrhoea is the most common symptom. People can also experience loss of appetite, weight loss, stomach cramps, bloating, gas, nausea and extreme tiredness.
Federal officials said the sharp fall in reported infections by August, together with the removal of implicated lettuce from distribution, allowed the CDC to close the outbreak. The FDA's continuing inquiry means the investigation into its cause has yet to reach the same conclusion.
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