U.S. farmers are forced to destroy lettuce crops due to plummeting demand, as consumers avoid the produce following fears of an outbreak of cyclosporosis infection.
California growers have skipped harvesting and buried their crops in the ground, according to federal health authorities who have not detected cyclospore—a parasite that causes intestinal infections—in American products. However, some consumers continue to avoid the vegetables.
The destruction is happening even without signs of infection, as restaurants and grocery stores have drastically reduced orders for lettuce supplies.
Authorities have linked the outbreak to iceberg lettuce that was served at Taco Bell restaurants and grown on private farms by Taylor Farms in Central Mexico. The U.S. government has been investigating the involvement of Taco Bell in a large-scale outbreak that has hospitalized over 80 people nationwide, with thousands affected across 30 states.
