Lettuce prices in the U.S. have fallen to record lows amid a cyclosporiasis outbreak
Prices for leaf lettuce in the U.S. fell by 16.4% in July compared to June—the largest monthly drop on record. According to CNBC, shoppers began avoiding this vegetable amid a multi-state outbreak of cyclosporiasis linked to the waterborne parasite Cyclospora.
According to seasonally adjusted data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, lettuce posted the largest monthly price decline among the items in the Consumer Price Index. Overall, food prices rose by 0.1% in July.
Prior to the July drop, lettuce prices in the U.S. had reached record highs this summer. At the same time, in July, they were still about 7.5% higher than a year earlier, more than double the rate of price growth in the consumer basket.
Jeremy Horpedal, an associate professor of economics at the University of Central Arkansas, attributed the sharp price drop to shoppers’ reluctance to buy lettuce due to the outbreak. According to him, the lower price is unlikely to quickly restore demand, as consumers remain concerned about the product’s safety.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration identified iceberg lettuce processed at the Taylor Farms facility in central Mexico as the likely source of the recent parasite outbreak. The company voluntarily recalled products from that facility.
Restaurant chains that feature the lettuce on their menus have also felt the impact of the outbreak. Cava reported broader consumer concerns about leafy greens and fresh produce, although sales trends have begun to recover. Sweetgreen reported a decline in demand and lowered its annual forecast. Chipotle estimated the negative impact on sales in the second half of July at approximately 2 percentage points, while noting that its salad supplies were not affected.
According to NielsenIQ, dollar sales of packaged salads for the four weeks ending July 25 fell 14% compared with the same period a year earlier.
