The salad chain responded to concerns from customers in an Instagram post on Wednesday, July 22. The message comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 4,173 confirmed Cyclospora cases as of Tuesday, July 21.
The CDC is also aware of more than 7,400 additional reported cases that have not yet been laboratory confirmed, with many of those reported in Michigan and Ohio. Federal and state health officials are investigating multiple Cyclospora clusters, including an outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce that has affected at least nine states.
Taylor Farms recalled iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico on Friday, July 17. The recall includes iceberg lettuce sold in retail stores, served in restaurants, and distributed in other products to food service customers.
Sweetgreen said it hasn't been identified in the outbreak.
"Our food safety experts continue to monitor the situation closely," the chain said. "Food safety shapes how we work every day."
According to the CDC, 308 people have been hospitalized and no deaths have been reported. Cases have been identified in 41 states among people who became sick after eating food in the US and didn't report traveling abroad during the 14 days before becoming ill.
Sweetgreen highlighted the food safety measures it says are in place throughout its supply chain.
"All of our lettuce comes from the US," the chain said. "Every lettuce supplier is carefully audited by an accredited third party. Our traceability program allows us to trace ingredients from the restaurant all the way back to the farm. Any unwashed produce is cleaned with a 100% natural-ingredients produce wash before prep."
Mexico's health minister, David Kershenobich, has disputed the Food and Drug Administration's connection between the outbreak and lettuce grown in Guanajuato, saying there's no evidence proving the illnesses originated there. US officials have continued to cite data linking illnesses to Taylor Farms lettuce.
Food safety experts told USA Today that Cyclospora outbreaks can be especially difficult to investigate. The parasite can't be tracked using the same genetic fingerprinting methods commonly used for bacteria like E. coli and Listeria.
Sweetgreen has more than 130 locations across the Northeast:
- Connecticut - 5
- Maryland - 7
- Massachusetts - 25
- New Hampshire - 2
- New Jersey - 10
- New York - 47
- Pennsylvania - 8
- Rhode Island - 1
- Virginia - 14
- Washington, DC - 12
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