July 17 (Reuters) – Wendy’s and Chipotle Mexican Grill said on Friday that their restaurants were not hit by a cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to shredded iceberg lettuce served at some Taco Bell outlets.
The burger chain said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s investigation is centered on iceberg lettuce imported from Mexico, which it does not use. Chipotle said it does not serve shredded iceberg lettuce, and that its romaine lettuce and Supergreens salad mix are not sourced from Mexico.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the CDC are investigating a cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. The parasitic illness can cause diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms.
On Thursday, the FDA said Yum Brands-owned Taco Bell would discontinue using lettuce from a supplier identified by the agency in its investigation, shortly after the restaurant chain’s statement that it had voluntarily removed the affected ingredient and would replace it within 24 hours in some states.
The FDA said 1,644 people infected with the parasitic intestinal illness across five states reported exposure to Taco Bell, citing CDC data.
Taco Bell and the FDA did not name the supplier, although the Washington Post reported that California-based supplier Taylor Farms had been identified by investigators as a potential source of contamination in the outbreak.
Taylor Farms did not respond to a request for comment.
Foodborne illness outbreaks can weigh heavily on restaurant stocks. McDonald’s faced scrutiny during a cyclospora outbreak linked to salads in 2018, while Chipotle grappled with a series of E. coli and norovirus outbreaks that hurt sales, damaged consumer confidence and pressured its shares.
(Reporting by Anuja Bharat Mistry in Bengaluru; Editing by Diti Pujara)
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