Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19
NYC Traces 442 Cyclospora Cases to Cilantro Cluster as Illness Tops 216 Annual Average
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19

NYC Traces 442 Cyclospora Cases to Cilantro Cluster as Illness Tops 216 Annual Average

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19

Summary

  • 442 cyclosporiasis cases have been diagnosed in New York City so far this year, with health officials tracing an April outbreak at least in part to contaminated cilantro.
  • Cyclospora is hard to pin down because symptoms can take up to 14 days to appear, leaving patients struggling to recall what they ate before falling ill.
  • City officials said the cilantro investigation shows how local lab reports, doctors and disease detectives work through a complex food-supply chain to identify contamination sources.
  • The cluster came weeks before a larger summer outbreak tied at least partly to iceberg lettuce sickened thousands nationwide, while the CDC continues investigating unrelated cases.

Insights

Thousands are sick from imported lettuce. How can we secure a global food chain when the danger is microscopic and invisible?
As a massive parasite outbreak hits a weakened surveillance system, is this the new normal for American food safety?