Taylor Farms lettuce and jalapeños found in many U.S. retailers as recalls continue

Taylor Farms, one of the largest producers of lettuce and jalapeño peppers in the United States, is at the center of two separate food-safety incidents. The Food and Drug Administration traced a cyclospora outbreak, which has caused illness in 47 states and resulted in two deaths, to recalled iceberg lettuce grown by the company. In a separate case, the FDA announced a recall of jalapeño-containing products linked to an ongoing salmonella outbreak, affecting items sold at Walmart, Target, Trader Joe’s and other retailers in 26 states.

The company issued a voluntary recall of the implicated iceberg lettuce on July 17, and the FDA has advised consumers not to eat the product, although testing through early August showed no confirmed positive samples for cyclospora. The salmonella recall does not appear to be related to the lettuce issue.

Taylor Farms supplies a wide range of grocery chains, including Walmart, Target, Safeway, Whole Foods, Meijer, H-E-B, Sprouts, Fry’s, Albertsons and Kroger, according to its online product locator. Restaurant chains that have used the firm’s lettuce include Taco Bell, which was cited during the lettuce recall, and Chipotle. Chipotle’s chief corporate affairs and food safety officer Laurie Schalow said, ">We are continuing to follow the Cyclospora investigation very closely, and at this time, we don’t believe the ingredients we source are associated."

The firm, founded in 1995 and now generating about $7 billion in revenue with more than 25,000 employees, has a history of voluntary recalls for various reasons, ranging from undeclared allergens to potential bacterial contamination. Company executives have noted that the frequency of recalls is proportional to the scale of its operations.

Taylor Farms has also been recognized for food-safety initiatives, such as co-founding the Center for Produce Safety in 2007 and introducing a water-monitoring system called SmartWash Solutions in 2009. The company’s extensive distribution network makes it difficult for consumers to identify the exact source of lettuce in restaurant dishes, prompting the current guidance from health authorities.