Here’s What to Know About Farmers’ Market Produce During the Cyclospora Outbreak

Food-safety experts stress that people should continue to buy and consume produce—whether at the grocery store or the farmers’ market—despite Cyclospora fears. “Don’t quit eating fruits and vegetables,” Rohde says. But people can take precautions to limit their risk of Cyclospora and other foodborne pathogens.

Bill Marler, a food-safety lawyer, recommends buying intact heads of lettuce and whole fruits and vegetables over bagged, boxed, or pre-cut produce. Centralized chopping, washing, mixing, and packaging can spread contamination from a relatively small amount of produce across a much larger batch, he says. 

Experts also advise washing produce thoroughly under running water, scrubbing hard fruits and vegetables such as melons and cucumbers, and following other food-safety practices, such as keeping raw meat and vegetables separate when cooking. 

Cooking food to an internal temperature of at least 158°F can kill Cyclospora. Rohde says he has been cooking most of his veggies lately and has been washing produce “more vigorously than usual.”