Federal health officials say they are confident that all iceberg lettuce linked to a nationwide cyclospora outbreak has been removed from U.S. markets, even as the case count from the summer-long outbreak continues to rise.
More than 11,000 people have been sickened this summer in an outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms of Mexico, CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell reported. Nearly 500 have been hospitalized, and two people have died — a rare outcome for cyclospora infections. Both deaths occurred in Michigan, which has emerged as the epicenter of the outbreak.
“It’s pretty incredible when you see when you see that spike there in Michigan,” said CNN’s John Berman, reacting to her reporting. “Yeah, that’s just an incredible spike.”
The recall was issued July 17, and the lettuce’s sell-by dates ran through Aug. 3. The most recent reported illness began Aug. 15, and the Food and Drug Administration says it remains confident that all recalled product has been pulled from shelves. Officials are urging anyone who still has Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce that expired around that date to discard it.
Illnesses in Michigan peaked in early July, before the recall took effect, but new cases continued to be reported into early August. Tirrell noted that cyclospora symptoms can take up to two weeks to appear after exposure, and it can take as long as six weeks for a case to be confirmed and linked back to the outbreak, which helps explain the lag in reported illnesses. The outbreak has now been tied to 20 states, with the Midwest hit hardest.
Food safety experts say the contamination has been isolated specifically to Taylor Farms’ shredded iceberg lettuce, and that consumers should not stop eating produce more broadly.
The Trump administration is shutting down two of the three U.S. Department of Agriculture research projects dedicated to studying cyclospora after Congress defunded them earlier this year, according to Politico.
The third is being moved from Maryland to Iowa this fall as part of USDA reorganization, but every scientist studying the parasite has declined to relocate, and the upheaval is expected to hamper food safety research as public concerns mount.
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