Home›Insurance›Property Insurance›FDA retracts positive cyclospora test linking Taylor F…

FDA retracts positive cyclospora test linking Taylor Farms lettuce

The FDA said the earlier result was a false positive, and it noted the update could help prevent the recall from expanding.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Property Insurance

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration withdrew a previous positive laboratory test that had linked Taylor Farms’ lettuce to the cyclospora outbreak, while health officials said the supplier remains under investigation, according to Insurance Journal.

The FDA said it re-examined the sample and concluded the result did not represent true amplification, citing the complexity of detecting cyclospora in laboratory testing. Health officials also said the change does not alter the scope of the current recall, but it could reduce the chance that the recall expands beyond its current bounds.

Cyclospora infections have been reported across the U.S. in 34 states, the article said, citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Michigan, the state with the highest case count, more than 5,000 illnesses had been recorded as of July 17, the article added.

The article noted that tracing cyclospora in food is difficult because lettuce has a short shelf life and because cyclospora testing poses specific challenges. It also cited CDC investigation methods including epidemiologic data, traceback, and food and environmental testing, and it referenced FDA former deputy commissioner Stephen Ostroff’s view that lack of positive samples would not necessarily clear a supplier in an outbreak like this.

More like this

Sources