Between prices and a diarrhea-causing parasite, lettuce is causing hard times at some restaurants

It's been a choppy year for restaurants that lean into lettuce. Lettuce prices rose sharply in the first half of 2026 due to hot weather in Arizona, where about one-third of America's lettuce is grown. Now, restaurants are dealing with the fallout from a Cyclospora outbreak linked to shredded lettuce that has sickened thousands of Americans. Yum! Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell, said that Taco Bell's U.S. same-store sales are down 2% so far in the July-September period due to customers' concerns over the outbreak. That compares to a 7% same-store sales increase in the April-June period. Federal health officials first tied the diarrhea-causing outbreak to shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia. Later, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said customers in Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania were also affected. Taco Bell removed shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms from its U.S. restaurants on July 17. The following day, Taylor Farms recalled iceberg lettuce grown in central Mexico. Taco Bell's sales bottomed out the weekend of July 18-19 but have been steadily improving since then, Yum! Brands Chief Financial Officer Ranjith Roy said in a conference call with investors. Taco Bell's U.S. sales have climbed halfway back to their year-ago level, he said. Yum! Brands CEO Chris Turner said Taco Bell's quick action to contain the issue and its clear communication on social media helped bring diners back. The brand also enticed fans with daily specials like a $1 Mexican Pizza. "With respect to the consumer sentiment, we've seen real improvement as consumers have understood better the nature of the issue," Turner said. "They understand that it is not a Taco Bell-specific issue." Other chains are also feeling some impact from the outbreak even though they haven't been named in government investigations. Chipotle Mexican Grill said that it expects its same-store sales to rise only 1% in the July-September period because of lower traffic due to the outbreak. It had previously expected same-store sales to rise 3% in that period. This article was provided by The Associated Press.