Taylor Farms lettuce contaminated with dangerous parasite, new class action lawsuit claims

Californian Kait Gelbspan and New Yorker Victor Granados filed a class action lawsuit against Taylor Farms in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California alleging the company sold lettuce and leafy greens contaminated with a parasite tied to a multistate outbreak.

Gelbspan and Granados say they bought and ate Taylor Farms products during the June and July 2026 outbreak window. Neither claims a specific illness; however, the lawsuit alleges they paid full price for worthless produce because of the contamination risk.

How the outbreak unfolded

Cyclospora cayetanensis is a microscopic parasite that causes cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal infection. Symptoms can include explosive diarrhea, cramps, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and weight loss and can last months.

The outbreak first surfaced June 22, 2026, in Michigan, according to the proposed class action. Within about two weeks, health officials recorded more than 4,312 cases and more than 100 hospitalizations across 34 states with the most cases in Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky.

On July 16, 2026, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified Taylor Farms as the potential source, the lawsuit claims. Investigators traced the cyclospora cluster to Taco Bell, which uses Taylor Farms for its shredded iceberg lettuce. Taco Bell then pulled the affected lettuce in select states and cut it from its supply chain, according to the suit.

Taylor Farms' safety record and past outbreaks

The plaintiffs allege the outbreak contradicts Taylor Farms' safety marketing, which promises advanced verification and AI-driven monitoring, claiming those systems missed the contamination.

They also allege a pattern. The proposed class action claims that in 2013, Taylor Farms salad mixes carrying the same parasite sickened 631 people in 25 states through Olive Garden and Red Lobster and in 2024, the company supplied onions served at McDonald's in an E. coli outbreak that sickened hundreds and killed at least one person.

Taylor Farms recalls central Mexico lettuce and disputes an FDA test

A day after the plaintiffs filed the lawsuit, July 17, 2026, Taylor Farms de Mexico voluntarily recalled all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico, told consumers to discard it and offered full refunds at the place of purchase. The company says the Food and Drug Administration traced the contamination to a single independent farm that supplies less than 1% of the U.S. iceberg crop and that no Taylor Farms branded salad or kit uses the lettuce at issue.

On its website, Taylor Farms also disputes the FDA's testing. It says the FDA told it on July 18 that a central Mexico iceberg sample tested positive for cyclospora but reversed course a day later and called the result a false positive. As of its July 20 update, Taylor Farms claims the FDA has not confirmed a positive product test in the outbreak.

The legal claims

The complaint brings six claims against Taylor Farms:

  • Negligence, alleging the company fell short of the care expected of a major food producer
  • Negligent misrepresentation, claiming Taylor Farms promoted its products as safe despite the alleged contamination
  • Breach of the implied warranty of merchantability, the built-in guarantee that food on store shelves is fit to eat
  • California's Unfair Competition Law, the state's ban on unlawful, unfair or deceptive business practices
  • New York General Business Law § 349, a parallel statute against deceptive consumer conduct
  • Unjust enrichment, a fallback claim that Taylor Farms should not keep profits from products the suit says harmed buyers

The class action seeks more than $5 million, covering shoppers' losses and the profits Taylor Farms made on the products, plus legal fees and an order to stop the alleged deceptive practices. The plaintiffs want a jury trial.

What the Taylor Farms lawsuit means for shoppers

The proposed classes cover anyone in the United States, and separately in California and New York, who bought the products during the June and July 2026 window. There is currently no settlement, claims process or payout.

Shoppers who bought recalled central Mexico iceberg lettuce can return it for a refund where they bought it although Taylor Farms says its branded salad kits are not part of the recall.