National E. coli attorneys at Marler Clark, Inc., PS, said in a news release that the firm filed lawsuits — two Indiana and one Missouri Federal E. coli O157:H7 lawsuits — against Taylor Farms. Marler Clark said the firm filed these lawsuits on behalf of two children and one adult who suffered hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) – acute kidney failure – due to E. coli O157:H7.
The firm said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has failed to report a romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak traced to Taylor Farms.
Marler Clark said it also amended five previously filed E. coli O157:H7 lawsuits to include Taylor Farms as being linked to salads catered at a high school in St. Louis, Miss., that sickened more than 50 people.
The firm alleges the CDC and FDA began an investigation into an outbreak of E. coli in November, and by the time the FDA closed the investigation in January 2025, the outbreak included 89 people across 15 states. Marler Clark said the onset dates ranged from Nov. 4 to Nov. 30, 2024. The ages of those sick ranged from 4 to 90. The firm said it found outcome information for 74 cases, of which 36 (49%) were hospitalized. The firm noted 7 cases of HUS were reported and one death was attributed to the outbreak.
The investigation, Marler Clark said, was confirmed to Taylor Farms’ romaine lettuce, but the CDC and FDA neglected to inform the public.
The firm said salads were the common link across all subclusters; cases in all subclusters ate a romaine lettuce blend. In the points of service (POS), the traceback focused on romaine lettuce, according to the firm.
Marler Clark said the FDA and CDC investigation consisted of three traceback legs that represented 28 cases and five points of service. The three traceback legs identified four distribution centers, one broker, two processors, one grower and one ranch but redacted all names in the documents.
The firm said a traceback investigation determined that a sole processor sourced romaine lettuce from a single grower that would have been available at all points of service during the time frame of interest. Romaine lettuce supplied to four of the five POS were traced back to the common ranch and lot.
The CDC and FDA closed the investigation on Jan. 15, with the confirmed vehicle being romaine lettuce, without alerting the public that Taylor Farms was the source of the outbreak, the firm alleges.
Related: Taylor Farms responds to lawsuit
“Taylor Farms product was not the source of the referenced 2024 E. coli outbreak,” Taylor Farms, the Salinas, Calif.-based company, said in a statement. “We perform extensive raw and finished product testing on all our product and there was no evidence of contamination. Any reporting that connects Taylor Farms products to these heartbreaking illnesses is dangerous, irresponsible and unfair to the impacted families.”
