Taco Bell Removes Lettuce From Some Stores Amid Cyclosporiasis Outbreak

The CDC said more than 1,644 people infected with cyclosporiasis said they had eaten at Taco Bell locations in five states before falling ill.

A Taco Bell restaurant in La Cañada Flintridge, Calif., on July 14, 2026. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Fast-food chain Taco Bell said on July 16 that it had removed lettuce sold in some of its stores amid a multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal disease caused by a microscopic parasite.

“Based on ongoing conversations with public health officials, and out of an abundance of caution, Taco Bell has taken immediate action to voluntarily remove potentially impacted lettuce ​from a supplier in select states,” Taco Bell said in a statement to news outlets.

Taco Bell said it would replace the lettuce within 24 hours over the possible link to the outbreak. It did not specify the ingredient’s supplier or say which states were affected.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on July 16 that shredded iceberg lettuce served at some Taco Bell locations was linked to cyclospora infections. It said the lettuce was sourced from a Mexico-based supplier and was used at Taco Bell restaurants in five states.

The investigation followed reports from more than 1,644 people infected with cyclosporiasis who said they had eaten at Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia.

“FDA [Food and Drug Administration] is working directly with the supplier to determine if contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce went to other places,” the CDC said, without identifying the supplier.

The agency also said that Taco Bell was working to remove the lettuce from its stores and urged people to avoid eating the ingredient.

More than half of the states in the country have recently reported cases of cyclosporiasis, which is caused by a parasite called cyclospora that spreads through produce contaminated with feces. Michigan has reported the most cases so far, with 4,312 as of July 16.

The CDC said in its latest update that it had identified 1,645 lab-confirmed cases of the parasite as of July 13, and none of them reported any travel during the two weeks before they fell sick.

Of those, 141 were hospitalized, while more than 5,100 additional cases still require further analysis to confirm whether they are domestically acquired cyclosporiasis. No deaths have been reported so far.

Cyclosporiasis cases happen in the United States each summer, but the number this year is unusually high, officials said. Prior cyclosporiasis outbreaks have been caused by contaminated produce such as green onions, peas, and raspberries.

Symptoms of cyclosporiasis include loose, watery stool and abdominal pain. Diagnosis typically involves testing stool samples. Antibiotics are usually the preferred treatment.

Health agencies are advising people to wash their hands before and after handling produce, wash produce before preparing, and consider cooking produce before consumption.

Zachary Stieber and Reuters contributed to this report.