Taylor Farms: How One Company's Reach Became a National Risk

Taylor Farms, a largely unknown $7 billion company that supplies 40% of U.S. salad kits and processes over 265 million food servings weekly, became a national food safety concern when its shredded iceberg lettuce was linked to a 2026 Cyclospora outbreak that sickened thousands. The company's enormous hidden reach—supplying groceries, restaurants, schools, and hospitals often under other brand names—means that contamination at a single facility can rapidly affect consumers across the entire country, raising broader questions about food safety, competition, and government oversight in a highly consolidated food system.