The source of the nation’s worst cyclosporiasis outbreak remains a mystery after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it discovered a false positive over the weekend.
Initially, the FDA said a lettuce sample supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico, which is headquartered in Salinas, tested positive for the parasite cyclospora on July 18. However, FDA laboratory scientists then reviewed the sample to confirm the finding. They “have concluded that the finding does not represent true amplification and should be considered a false positive,” the FDA said in an update on Sunday. Currently, there are “no confirmed positive sample results” among products tested for cyclospora.
The news is a major blow for public health experts, as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting over 1,600 confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis. Another 5,100 suspected cases are being investigated to see if they were contracted domestically. Previously, the highest number of cyclosporiasis cases in the U.S. in a year was reported in 2019, with about 4,700 cases.
The parasitic disease is spread through contaminated food or water. It can cause watery diarrhea, nausea and weight loss that can last weeks to months. Past outbreaks have been connected to fresh produce.
After the initial positive detection last week, Taylor Farms announced a voluntary recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from Central Mexico due to the risk of cyclospora contamination. SFGATE’s emailed request to the company for comment regarding the false positive was not returned by the time of publication.
Last week, the CDC warned people to avoid eating shredded lettuce from Taco Bell in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. In a statement released by Taco Bell on Friday, company officials said they had already removed the lettuce from their restaurants.
“Based on ongoing conversations with public health officials, and out of an abundance of caution, Taco Bell worked swiftly to voluntarily remove the product from restaurants and the affected ingredient has been removed from our supply chain nationwide,” read the statement released on Friday.
Despite the nationwide outbreak, cases in California are not elevated, with 41 reported infections since the start of the year. That number is about half of the 80 cases reported for the same time last year.
Gillian Mohney
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