A Taco Bell franchise is currently embroiled in the first federal lawsuit associated with the 2026 cyclosporiasis outbreak blamed on contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce.
This lawsuit filed on July 16 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio targets Pacific Bells, LLC, a Washington-based franchise running the North Olmsted Taco Bell location, in addition to several unknown corporations labeled as “John Doe Corporations 1-5.”
William Marler, the attorney who filed the lawsuit, remarked to Oxygen, “It’s terrible. Even the mildest case involves two or three weeks of cramping and explosive diarrhea, which is certainly unpleasant.”
The lawsuit details that local resident Mohammed R. Ayyad dined at the North Olmsted Taco Bell three times, twice on June 14 and again on June 21, purchasing menu items such as Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes and Avocado Ranch Chicken Stackers.
Two days after his last visit, on June 23, Ayyad began experiencing a myriad of symptoms, including a headache, chills, body weakness, “persistent diarrhea,” and disrupted sleep.
Cyclosporiasis is an intestinal illness from consuming food or water contaminated with the parasite Cyclospora, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Symptoms, such as weight loss, nausea, fatigue and “watery diarrhea” usually arise anywhere from two to 14 days after exposure.
Ayyad visited a Cleveland Clinic urgent care facility on July 3 and was advised to take Imodium, according to the lawsuit.
Three days later, he provided a stool sample, which tested positive for cyclosporiasis on July 9, according to the lawsuit. Ayyad was prescribed the antibiotic Bactrim, but continued experiencing constant nausea, which has allegedly prevented him from working and resulted in lost income, according to the lawsuit.
On July 17, Taco Bell announced that it has “completed removal of affected Taylor Farms lettuce from our restaurants. Based on ongoing conversations with public health officials, and out of an abundance of caution, Taco Bell worked swiftly to voluntarily remove the product from restaurants and the affected ingredient has been removed from our supply chain nationwide.”
That same day, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated, “Taylor Farms de Mexico announced that they are voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico from the U.S. market. Taylor Farms also informed FDA that they would initiate a recall. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
The agency also issued a warning for consumers to avoid eating shredded iceberg lettuce imported from Mexico served at Taco Bell locations in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and West Virginia.
Taylor Farms, a Salinas, California-based company, said in a July 17 Facebook post: “Based on information provided yesterday by the FDA, Taylor Farms de Mexico is voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico. While the FDA traceback is indicating a specific independent farm, which represents less than 1% of the U.S.’s iceberg lettuce supply, as the potential source of the outbreak, we have removed all iceberg lettuce from the region indefinitely.”
The company added that no Taylor Farms branded salads or kits are associated with the outbreak and that none of its salad kits contain iceberg lettuce.
Spokespeople from Pacific Bells, LLC and Taylor Farms did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Oxygen.