The Trump administration is denying any pay-to-play arrangement with Taylor Farms after federal health officials briefly reported—then walked back—a positive Cyclospora test tied to the company’s lettuce, all amid a growing multistate outbreak.
Progressive outlet MeidasTouch flagged an FEC filing showing Taylor Fresh Foods, the parent company, cut a $1 million check to MAGA Inc. back in March 2025.
Around about the same time, the New York Times reported that Taylor Farms executives sat down with White House and FDA officials last Thursday specifically to gripe about how the outbreak response was being handled. The company also recently brought on former White House aide Trent Morse, presumably not for his lettuce expertise.
HHS’s response to all this was about as subtle as you’d expect: the agency accused critics of implying collusion while ignoring the facts, insisting nothing but science and public safety drives its decisions even though there is nothing science-y about the agency’s head, RFK Jr.
Of course, their response was the all-too-typical, “FAKE NEWS!” victimization cry from this administration while Americans are literally shitting themselves.
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