WINK News Digital Team
•8/6/2026
FORT MYERS, Fla. (WINK) — Qdoba is now following suit with Chipotle by pulling jalapeños from its menus after a salmonella outbreak impacted at least 27 states as of Thursday morning, according to federal health officials.
The CDC has identified the outbreak as being linked to the peppers grown in Sinaloa, Mexico. It says they were then distributed by Coast Citrus Distributors to various restaurants and wholesalers.
At this point, the CDC says the Salmonella Javiana strain has sickened at least 345 people nationwide, with 36 people hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
The outbreak is primarily affecting Colorado and Minnesota, and there are no cases in Florida yet.
Because Chipotle and Qdoba have already removed the peppers from their menus, the CDC says there is no ongoing risk at those establishments.
Qdoba released a statement addressing the situation: "Out of an abundance of caution, we have proactively removed jalapeños from all our restaurants at this time. We take any report involving guest health seriously and are committed to responding appropriately based on the facts and guidance from public health authorities."
The CDC says right now, the Food and Drug Administration is actively working to determine if the contaminated peppers went to grocery stores as well, and consumers are asked to check their own jalapeño peppers carefully by calling the place of purchase to determine the source.
Salmonella symptoms include diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. According to Mayo Clinic, the symptoms can come on within eight to 72 hours after exposure, and adds that healthy individuals typically recover naturally within a few days to a week.
A separate stomach virus has been making headlines this summer in the United States, as the cyclospora outbreak marks the largest known cyclosporiasis season on record.
New numbers released by the Florida Department of Health Thursday morning show cases across the state and in the southwest Florida region have risen since last week.
Charlotte County is reporting its first case of cyclosporiasis, while Collier County's case count has risen to 7, and Lee County now has 32 reported cases.
There are still no cases in Glades, Hendry or DeSoto counties.
Last week, Lee County had the second-highest number of cyclosporiasis cases in Florida, but this week its ranking has dropped to third, behind Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
