Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, speaks during a news conference at Health and Human Services headquarters in Washington, February 23, 2026.
Nathan Howard | Reuters
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Tuesday that the ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak is “under control.”
“We have identified the source of the outbreak and the companies involved have conducted a recall,” Kennedy said, answering questions during a news conference on health care fraud.
The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, both under Kennedy’s jurisdiction as HHS secretary, have been criticized for their responses to the outbreak. Critics have criticized federal authorities for delays in alerting the public and finding the source of the outbreak, which authorities have done linked to shredded iceberg lettuce from central Mexico supplied by fruit and vegetable giant Taylor Farms.
Some have claimed that the Trump administration’s agency cuts have hampered the investigation, although the Cyclospora parasite itself is challenging due to its long incubation period.
“This criticism is invalid,” Kennedy said during the briefing, responding to a question about criticism of job cuts under his leadership. “We didn’t make any cuts in the monitoring program. We made cuts in the FoodNet program, but they were for redundant monitoring.”
FoodNet, the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network, stopped reporting six out of eight pathogens – including Cyclospora – last year due to funding cuts. The organization is a partnership between the CDC, FDA, ten state health departments and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The FDA has concluded that the current Cyclospora outbreak is linked to iceberg lettuce, some of which was used Delicious brands‘Taco Bell. Taylor Farms has recalled the products linked to the outbreak, while Taco Bell has removed them from its restaurants.
However, the FDA’s announcement of a false positive test for Cyclospora in a lettuce sample from Taylor Farms during its investigation sparked confusion and prompted the agency to issue a clarification on Monday. It is still suspected that the company’s iceberg lettuce was the cause of the outbreak.
The CDC, FDA and public health officials in several states have been investigating the outbreak, with the first illnesses appearing on May 13. More than 1,644 cases have been reported so far, with 94 hospitalizations and no deaths, the CDC said.
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