A Pennsylvania woman says a fast-food order turned into a hospital stay after she allegedly became sick from Cyclospora-contaminated lettuce, placing her lawsuit at the center of a nationwide food safety investigation.
Heather Kebert ordered an Avocado Ranch Chicken Stacker at a Taco Bell in Meadville, Pennsylvania, on July 7. Five days later, she says she was hospitalized with severe dehydration and diarrhea, which her lawsuit attributes to Cyclospora contamination in the shredded iceberg lettuce included with her meal.
Kebert filed a federal complaint on Aug. 18 against Taco Bell, Taylor Farms and Taylor Fresh, alleging she was not warned about a possible contamination risk and would not have purchased the food if she had known.
The lawsuit comes as federal investigators traced a national Cyclospora outbreak to iceberg lettuce from the same Mexican processor named in her complaint. Taylor Farms did not issue a recall until ten days after her alleged purchase.
The Timeline Behind Kebert’s Lawsuit
The complaint follows a straightforward sequence: a restaurant meal, sudden illness, hospitalization, diagnosis, and a recall that came afterward.
According to the lawsuit, Kebert had no reason to believe the meal she purchased from a Meadville-area Taco Bell carried any health risk. The complaint alleges Taylor Farms supplied or distributed the shredded iceberg lettuce in the Avocado Ranch Chicken Stacker and that it contained Cyclospora contamination.
The lawsuit, according to USA Today, states that Kebert “did not know, and did not have a reason to know, that the Product she purchased and consumed was contaminated.” Her attorneys argue that both Taco Bell and its supplier had a responsibility to warn customers about the potential danger before serving the food.
Her symptoms reportedly began around July 10. She was hospitalized starting July 12 and spent two days receiving treatment for severe dehydration and diarrhea before later learning from Pennsylvania health officials that she had tested positive for Cyclospora.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, claims the product “did not conform to what was promised” and that Kebert “would not have purchased and consumed (the food) had she known the truth.” No court has ruled on those allegations.1
How a National Outbreak Led Back to One Supplier
Before Kebert’s lawsuit was filed, federal agencies were already investigating a larger pattern of Cyclospora illnesses connected to iceberg lettuce.
The earliest illnesses later tied to the outbreak began as early as May 13. By mid-July, the CDC and FDA had identified shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia as the focus of their investigation.
Among 190 Michigan patients who reported eating at Taco Bell before becoming ill, 90% reportedly said they had eaten iceberg lettuce. Investigators traced the lettuce supply chain back to Taylor Farms de Mexico, a Taylor Farms facility based in central Mexico. The affected distribution period covered June 29 through July 16 and included Pennsylvania among 27 states that received shipments.
Taylor Farms de Mexico began removing the product from the U.S. market on July 17, and Taylor Fresh Foods issued a formal recall the same day.
What Officials Found During the Investigation
A brief laboratory reversal complicated the investigation, but officials said the broader evidence did not depend on a single test result.
On July 18, the FDA announced a positive Cyclospora result from a lettuce sample. Reuters said the agency retracted that finding the next day, calling it a false positive.
That reversal created questions about one piece of evidence, but officials said the investigation continued based on patient interviews, food histories, supply-chain traceback and outbreak timing. Cyclospora investigations can be especially challenging because the parasite cannot be grown in laboratory culture, making direct matches between a contaminated food item and individual illnesses difficult.
The government findings support a broader connection between the outbreak and iceberg lettuce linked to Taylor Farms de Mexico. They do not determine whether the lettuce served in Kebert’s specific meal contained Cyclospora on July 7.
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That question remains part of the legal process. The lawsuit will focus on evidence tied directly to her meal, including the supply chain and the product involved.
Taco Bell Removed Lettuce While Denying a Confirmed Link
Taco Bell responded by removing the ingredient as a precaution while maintaining that no specific restaurant, supplier, or product had been confirmed as the source of illness.
The company reportedly said it voluntarily removed limited ingredients at select restaurants and informed the FDA that it stopped using Taylor Farms de Mexico lettuce on July 17.
At the same time, Taco Bell said there was no confirmed connection between its restaurants, “any specific ingredient, supplier, restaurant or retailer,” and Cyclospora infections. The company said removing the ingredient was a safety measure, not an admission of responsibility.
Kebert’s attorney, Rob Peirce, said this current lawsuit will examine how lettuce grown in central Mexico moved through the supply chain and reached a restaurant in western Pennsylvania without the contamination being detected.
Why Cyclospora Can Become a Longer Health Problem
Cyclospora is not always a short-lived illness, and symptoms can continue or return after the initial infection.
The parasite spreads through contaminated fresh produce and can cause frequent diarrhea that lasts days or even up to a month. Some infections can recur after symptoms appear to improve.
Peirce described Cyclospora to CBS as an infection that “can raise in the future, unfortunately.” The complaint does not provide a long-term medical prognosis for Kebert beyond her reported diagnosis, hospitalization, and symptoms.
The larger outbreak extended far beyond one individual case. As of Aug. 17, the CDC had recorded 15,716 laboratory-confirmed U.S. acquired Cyclospora cases, 828 hospitalizations, and two deaths nationwide.
More than 10 federal lawsuits had been filed in connection with the outbreak. Neither Taco Bell nor Taylor Farms had publicly responded to Kebert’s complaint at the time of filing.
What Kebert’s Lawsuit Hopes To Uncover
The lawsuit seeks answers about how the contamination happened and what changes could prevent a similar situation in the future.
“Ms. Kebert should not have spent part of her summer in a hospital bed after eating at a national restaurant chain,” Peirce reportedly said. “In this litigation, we intend to determine how the lettuce became contaminated and what steps Taco Bell and Taylor Farms can take to help ensure this never happens again.”
Those answers will likely depend on evidence specific to her meal, including the lettuce batch, its distribution path, and whether Cyclospora was present when the product reached the restaurant. The FDA was still working with Mexican authorities on inspections and sampling when the lawsuit was filed. Officials had not publicly identified where contamination entered the supply chain.
The outcome of Kebert’s case will depend on future regulatory findings, court filings, and evidence presented during the legal process.
If a restaurant removed an ingredient from its menu as a precaution but publicly denied any confirmed link to an illness, would that be enough to make you comfortable ordering there again?
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