Salad mix from Mexican farm linked to Cyclospora outbreak

The FDA has linked the salad mix implicated in the multistate Cyclospora outbreak to Taylor Farms de Mexico, S. de R.L. de C.V., a processor of food service produce.

The farm is the common supplier of salad mix to restaurants in Iowa and Nebraska that are linked to the outbreak. The affected restaurants include Olive Garden and Red Lobster. According to the FDA, consumer salad mix sold in grocery stores has not been implicated. Iowa and Nebraska health officials believe the contaminated salad is no longer available in those states.

The farm is cooperating with the FDA, which is conducting an environmental investigation of the processing facility in Mexico to learn the cause of the outbreak. An FDA inspection of the facility conducted in 2011 found no issues.

The FDA is increasing surveillance on green leafy products exported to the United States from Mexico.

The Cyclospora outbreak has spread through 19 states, and the case count, as of Aug. 12, is 539, according to the CDC. At least 32 people have been hospitalized in five states, and the majority of cases have been reported in Iowa, Texas and Nebraska. The CDC confirmed 41 cases and continues to investigate. It encourages state health departments to obtain CDC confirmation using telediagnosis.

Most of the illness-onset dates ranged from mid-June to early July. None of the patients has a history of recent travel outside of the United States or Canada.

States reporting cases are Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin. It has not been confirmed, however, if all cases are part of the same outbreak.

—Last updated August 14, 2013