The Lettuce Scare Ended. These Food Safety Problems Didn’t.

This summer’s cyclospora outbreak, the largest in U.S. history, sickened more than 12,000 people across 21 states, hospitalized at least 570, and was linked to two deaths after contaminated iceberg lettuce from a Taylor Farms facility in Mexico triggered recalls stretching from Taco Bell to Walmart. The outbreak exposed longstanding gaps in food safety oversight, including delayed tracing rules and confusing recall notices, and left Americans’ confidence in federal food safety at a record low. The FDA has released a 10-point prevention plan, but watchdogs are pressing for faster action before cyclospora season rolls around again next summer.