Taylor Farms, North America's leading salad supplier, tied to 15,000-case US cyclosporiasis outbreak

AI digestMimile.ai EditorialAugust 20, 2026 at 03:03 PM

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Taylor Farms, North America's leading salad supplier, tied to 15,000-case US cyclosporiasis outbreak

Taylor Farms, North America's leading salad supplier, is tied to a U.S. cyclosporiasis outbreak that pushed wholesale lettuce prices down a record 73% in July. The CDC has confirmed more than 15,000 cases across 47 states and two deaths, even as the company spends more than $200 million annually on food safety.

Key Facts

The CDC has confirmed more than 15,000 cyclosporiasis cases across 47 states and two deaths.
Taylor Farms is a $7 billion enterprise with more than 25,000 employees, according to the University of California, Berkeley.
Sabor Farms plowed under some cilantro fields after demand sank about 30%, said founder and president Jess Quinlan.
Taylor Farms' salads are sold in Walmart, Kroger and Costco, and the company supplies McDonald's and Taco Bell.

Market Dominance

Taylor Farms changed the way America eats after launching branded, prepackaged and washed chopped salads more than a decade ago. Its flavors range from Asiago Kale to Broccoli Crunch, and the products are ubiquitous at Walmart, Kroger and Costco. Taylor Farms is North America's leading salad producer and an indispensable supplier to McDonald's and Taco Bell. The company spends more than $200 million annually on food safety, including pathogen tests that exceed industry guidance. Local producers say the company's size reflects founder Bruce Taylor's dominance in a food industry with few large players.

Salinas Valley Losses

The outbreak was tied to iceberg lettuce processed by Taylor Farms in central Mexico, not the United States. Cyclosporiasis is an intestinal infection that can give people explosive diarrhea for weeks. Wholesale lettuce prices plunged a record 73% in July as demand for fresh produce disappeared. A major handler of leafy greens cut employees' hours in a processing plant because of lower demand. The decline quickly wiped out potential profits for the year for some farmers in California's Salinas Valley.

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Taylor Farms, North America's leading salad supplier, tied to 15,000-case US cyclosporiasis outbreak

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Taylor Farms, North America's leading salad supplier, tied to 15,000-case US cyclosporiasis outbreak

Key Facts

Market Dominance

Salinas Valley Losses

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