Chipotle pulls menu mainstay due to possible link to major Salmonella outbreak
Chipotle Mexican Grill has temporarily axed one of its ingredients while officials continue to investigate a Salmonella outbreak, with over 300 cases being reported.
Hundreds of cases of Salmonella Javiana, typically linked to fresh produce, including melon and tomatoes, have been reported across more than two dozen US states, officials have confirmed.
As of Wednesday (5 August), the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that of the 345 reported cases, nobody had been hospitalised.
However, it has been reported that 345 people across 27 states have suffered infection symptoms, including painful stomach cramps, nausea, headaches, and diarrhoea.
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Whilst collecting different types of data to investigate a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Javiana infections, officials believe they’ve found the root of the problem, as per a CDC statement.
The notice states that ‘epidemiologic and traceback data show that jalapeño peppers from Sinaloa, Mexico and distributed by Coast Citrus Distributors may be contaminated with Salmonella Javiana and are making people sick’.
Amid the outbreak, the CDC has asked all businesses to check for and not serve recalled jalapeño peppers while the investigation is ongoing.
Chipotle removes jalapeño peppers from its menu
The CDC confirmed that amid the jalapeño peppers probe, Chipotle Mexican Grill and QDOBA have stopped serving the ‘affected’ items.
“Given their actions to remove product from their stores, CDC and FDA do not consider there to be a current ongoing risk from these establishments to consumers in this outbreak.”
Healthline reported that the menu item has been removed from Chipotle sites in Minnesota. Other locations that received the same batch of peppers have also removed them from sale.
In its own statement, the brand said it had traced the ingredient to a common source, removed the product from the relevant restaurants, and replaced it with jalapeños from different growers, as per Healthline.
In a notice, Chipotle claimed that the health and safety of its guests and employees was its ‘highest priority’.
“We have a robust ingredient traceability system and, upon learning of a potential Salmonella outbreak in the supply chain impacting wholesalers and restaurants, we identified jalapeños from a particular grower in Sinaloa, Mexico and distributed by Coast Citrus Distributors as a common ingredient from a common lot, proactively removed them from the restaurants where they had been distributed, and replaced them with product from different growers,” it read.
FOODbible has contacted Chipotle for further comment.
Expert calls jalepeño cull a ‘precautionary food safety measure’
Speaking about Chipotle’s decision to pull jalapeños amid the illness outbreak, Robert Glatter, a physician and assistant professor at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Emergency Medicine, told Healthline that it was a ‘precautionary food safety measure — not a reason to panic’.
“When a possible source of contamination is identified, pulling that ingredient quickly is one of the most effective ways to stop an outbreak from growing,
Salmonella outbreak comes amid cyclospora epidemic
The news that US citizens are suffering from Salmonella symptoms comes at the same time as the deadly cyclosporiasis outbreak, impacting at least 15 states.
Earlier this week, reports confirmed that two people had died following infection.
State officials said that the victims had ‘significant underlying health conditions that may have been impacted by cyclosporiasis and dehydration’,
The outbreak has resulted in the remaining Salad and Go shops shutting down, with the company filing for bankruptcy.
“While Salad and Go earned the support and loyalty of a deeply passionate community, the business was ultimately unable to overcome sustained pressure on consumer demand, past strategic growth challenges and rising costs,” a business statement read.
“A Cyclospora outbreak in July, in which Salad and Go was not implicated, weakened confidence across the industry and compounded these challenges.”
Meanwhile, Taylor Farm Foods has recalled iceberg lettuce from Mexico, telling FOODbible: "We are passionate about helping people live healthier lives through fresh produce, and the safety of our food is paramount. We maintain best-in-class Cyclospora prevention protocols and invest more than $200 million annually into our independently audited and verified food safety protocols.
"When questions were raised about the source of the recent Cyclospora outbreak, we immediately removed all potentially implicated product from the marketplace, and out of an abundance of caution we issued an even broader recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from the region.
"We have also voluntarily suspended all iceberg lettuce sourcing and production from central Mexico."
The company continued, stating the business had 'commissioned independent experts to conduct a top-to-bottom review of food safety processes and protocols in our central Mexico facility'.
“We continue to work with health authorities, customers, and independent farming partners to address this issue," a spokesperson confirmed.
"According to the FDA, there are no confirmed positive sample results for product testing for Cyclospora as of July 24, 2026. We are confident in our food and food safety systems and will continue to be transparent as more information becomes available."
Ella Scott