By Lina Irawan 
The summer of 2026 brought an unwelcome spotlight onto the fresh produce industry, as federal investigators meticulously traced a widespread Cyclospora outbreak to iceberg lettuce originating from central Mexico. While major fast-food chains like Taco Bell were directly implicated, leading to the temporary removal of certain menu items and a significant dent in their reputation, the ripple effects of public health fears cast a long shadow over the entire fresh food sector. Sweetgreen, a brand built on the promise of fresh, high-quality, and transparently sourced ingredients, found itself caught in this collateral damage despite its stringent sourcing practices and explicit avoidance of iceberg lettuce and Mexican suppliers for its greens.
The Cyclospora cayetanensis parasite, known for causing cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal illness characterized by severe diarrhea, nausea, and fatigue, became a household concern. Its transmission through contaminated food or water, often linked to imported fresh produce, highlighted vulnerabilities in global supply chains. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported hundreds of cases across multiple states, fueling widespread media coverage that inevitably stoked consumer anxiety about the safety of salads and other fresh vegetable dishes. This fear, a visceral response to a public health threat, proved indiscriminate.
For Sweetgreen, a company that prides itself on its "farm-to-desk" philosophy and a direct relationship with its growers, the impact was immediate and financial. In August, just as the outbreak news was dominating headlines, the company was forced to significantly cut its full-year outlook. What was initially projected as a modest same-store sales decline of 2% to 4% for the year was revised to a more severe 7% to 8% drop. This drastic recalibration underscored the acute sensitivity of the fresh food market to public perception, even in the absence of direct culpability. The CDC eventually declared the outbreak over on September 11, but the summer’s scars remained.
"It was a painful summer because that was like the headline for all summer," remarked Nic Jammet, Sweetgreen’s chief concept officer and cofounder, in an interview with Fortune. His concern extended beyond Sweetgreen’s bottom line, touching on a broader societal worry. Jammet articulated a fear that the pervasive headlines and messaging surrounding produce recalls might inadvertently nudge consumers towards believing that "the safer thing is actually highly processed food." This potential shift in consumer preference, away from fresh and towards packaged, shelf-stable alternatives, represents an existential threat to Sweetgreen’s core mission and the broader movement towards healthier eating. Jammet even recounted witnessing farmers tilling fields of perfectly good greens back into the ground due to cancelled orders and plummeting demand—a tragic testament to the economic devastation wrought by widespread fear.
The Cyclospora scare landed on a chain already navigating a complex turnaround. The halcyon days of pre-pandemic office desk-salads, a cornerstone of Sweetgreen’s early success, have yet to fully return in the era of hybrid and remote work. In 2025, the company had reported an 11.5% year-over-year drop in same-store sales, signaling the need for strategic recalibration. However, under the leadership of CEO Jonathan Neman, Sweetgreen had already embarked on an ambitious turnaround plan. This comprehensive strategy focused on optimizing operations for greater efficiency, revamping marketing efforts to reconnect with evolving consumer preferences, introducing innovative menu changes to broaden appeal, and strategically adjusting pricing. This proactive approach had started to yield positive results, with the stock gaining nearly 28% year-to-date before the Cyclospora news broke, indicating an underlying resilience and investor confidence in the new direction.
Evidence of Sweetgreen’s accelerated recovery post-outbreak further solidified its turnaround narrative. On September 28, Wells Fargo analyst Anthony Trainor upgraded Sweetgreen’s stock, citing a faster-than-expected rebound in consumer sentiment and sales. This endorsement sent shares soaring, hitting their highest intraday level since the outbreak began in mid-July. Complementary data from Placer.ai, a leading foot traffic analytics firm, provided tangible proof of this resurgence. From July 6 through September 11, Sweetgreen’s average visits per location rose an impressive 5.6% year over year, a stark contrast to rival Chopt’s 7.7% decline during the same period. This demonstrated not only Sweetgreen’s ability to weather the storm but also its capacity to outperform competitors even amidst industry-wide challenges.
"I feel like we’re on the other side of cyclospora, and the world has kind of moved on," Jammet stated, reflecting a palpable sense of relief and renewed optimism. "At the end of the day, we moved past it, and so we’re excited to be on the other side of it."
Sweetgreen’s strategic response to the crisis was not merely reactive but integrated into its ongoing innovation drive. Just days before Jammet’s reflections, the company announced cookbook author Molly Baz as its first-ever Chef-in-Residence. This high-profile collaboration, the latest in a series of innovative menu launches and partnerships throughout the year, aimed to inject fresh creativity and culinary excitement into the brand. Baz’s limited-edition offerings – a Caesar wrap, a pickle Caesar salad, and a scoop of chicken salad with a pickle spear – available through November 9, exemplify Sweetgreen’s evolving menu strategy.
Jammet highlighted the significance of these collaborations, including earlier partnerships with food icon Alice Waters and the trendy tinned-fish brand Fishwife, in "bringing back a bit of that drumbeat that, you know, really built the brand." These initiatives are crucial to Sweetgreen’s broader effort to shed the "slop bowl" label and expand its identity beyond just a "salad chain." The introduction of wraps, a strategic push initiated earlier in the year, has been particularly successful in addressing what some refer to as "bowl fatigue." Jammet enthusiastically reported that the response to wraps "has been really great," emphasizing that "Sweetgreen is not a slop bowl. It is high-quality ingredients composed and cooked from scratch." He envisions Sweetgreen as offering "food that you could eat every day. It’s not like one specific flavor, one specific cuisine."
Never Waste a Crisis
The "never waste a crisis" philosophy isn’t new to Sweetgreen’s founders. A week before the chain’s inaugural store opened in Washington, D.C., in 2007, a devastating break-in left Jammet and his cofounders, Jonathan Neman and Nathaniel Ru, without the laptop containing all their meticulously crafted recipes and training materials. In an era predating ubiquitous cloud backups, this was a catastrophe. Yet, the trio pulled all-nighters, painstakingly rebuilding everything from old emails, transforming a setback into an early lesson in resilience.
"Even though that was a crisis, it really forced us to just think about this idea that, like, never waste a crisis," Jammet recounted. "Shit’s always going to happen to you, so you’ve got to be ready to find solutions." This foundational experience imbued the company with a pragmatic, problem-solving ethos that served them well during the Cyclospora incident. Jammet’s advice for other restaurateurs grappling with similar fallout is consistent: "Try to stay long-term focused, and honestly, we try to stay as close to the customer as possible." He stressed that customer preferences are changing at an unprecedented pace, making deep understanding and responsiveness more critical than ever. For Sweetgreen, this meant doubling down on emphasizing its rigorously managed supply chain and maintaining unwavering focus on operational excellence in its stores, rather than allowing the company to "get too distracted by the narrative."
Growing Up at La Caravelle
Jammet’s innate understanding of hospitality and culinary excellence is deeply rooted in his upbringing. His parents, André and Rita Jammet, were the proprietors of La Caravelle, one of Manhattan’s most esteemed French dining rooms. A bastion of classic French cuisine, La Caravelle was a favorite of the Kennedy family, known for its impeccable service and haute cuisine. Its head chef even recommended the cook Jacqueline Kennedy hired for the White House kitchen. The restaurant was nominated for the James Beard Foundation’s Outstanding Restaurant award shortly before its closure in 2004, during Jammet’s freshman year of college.
Jammet grew up within the hallowed walls of La Caravelle. "My parents ran it together, like mom and pop, there every day. If my dad wasn’t there, they weren’t open," he recalled. His father’s rigorous routine included early morning trips to the fish market at 5 a.m. on Tuesdays and the meat market at 5 a.m. on Wednesdays. These early experiences instilled in him a profound appreciation for quality ingredients and the relentless dedication required in the food industry. He paints a vivid picture of his childhood: "I have two brothers. Three little five-year-old boys sitting in one of the booths at a fine dining restaurant in our little suits and ties," referring to his twin brother Patrick and older brother Christophe. "Customers would walk behind me like, ‘Why are these three, like, toddlers sitting here eating canelés and soufflés by themselves?’"
For Jammet, the fundamental principles governing fine dining are remarkably similar to those of fast casual: a steadfast commitment to high-quality product and ensuring "people leaving better than when they came in." This philosophy, steeped in the tradition of meticulous French hospitality, forms the bedrock of Sweetgreen’s customer-centric approach.
The Sweetgreen Challenge
Jammet’s passion for fresh food and its transformative power dates back to Sweetgreen’s genesis. When the chain opened its first doors in Washington, D.C., in 2007, the cultural landscape was ripe for a healthy food revolution. Michael Pollan’s influential books, nutrition scholar Marion Nestle’s incisive critiques, and Morgan Spurlock’s eye-opening documentary Super Size Me were at the peak of their influence. Two years later, Michelle Obama’s "Let’s Move!" initiative brought a powerful focus on healthy eating to the national stage through the White House. "So much of what inspired birthing and growing Sweetgreen was this shift in how people thought about and talked about their food," Jammet observed.
Years later, the spirit of Super Size Me inspired Tim Donohue, a 27-year-old ad agency copywriter from Hoboken, N.J. A former fast-food enthusiast, Donohue’s coworkers had been urging him to adopt healthier eating habits. He decided to take on a personal challenge: eat solely from Sweetgreen’s menu, twice a day, for 25 consecutive days. The results were compelling: he lost nine pounds (though he also ceased drinking alcohol during the period) and spent just under $1,000 on his meals.
Sweetgreen, recognizing the powerful narrative in Donohue’s endeavor, transformed his personal video into the official "Sweetgreen Challenge," expanding it to a 30-day version. The company extended an invitation to 30 dedicated Sweetgreen fans, providing them with a generous credit of $700 per week for meals, plus an additional $500 to help them participate. "We don’t expect people to eat Sweetgreen twice a day, but it just is kind of like the extreme challenge of it all to show you the power of the decisions you make around what you’re eating and how it makes you feel," Jammet explained. He himself has long practiced a version of this challenge, eating Sweetgreen about once a day and increasing it to twice daily after turning 40, as part of his commitment to achieving peak physical condition. "I’ve been doing some version of the challenge for 20 years," he proudly stated.
For Donohue, the greatest hurdle wasn’t the food itself but the intricate logistics. He recounted missing a concert in Brooklyn and once borrowing a car for an hour-long drive after inadvertently ordering to the wrong store. By day 20, he felt as though he was "living on a different planet." The challenge, he mused, was a unique way to "travel without going anywhere, because you can live an entirely different life just by changing what you eat every day."
Donohue confirmed that Sweetgreen never directly paid him for his viral video, though he did receive a "generous amount" of reward points after the company officially launched its own challenge. The most surprising outcome for him? His continued loyalty. "I actually thought that when this project was done, that I would swear off Sweetgreen and never eat it ever again in my life. And to my surprise, one week after I finished this challenge, I was just genuinely craving it." He still eats there three times a week, a testament to the enduring appeal and habit-forming nature of Sweetgreen’s offerings.
The Cyclospora outbreak was an unforeseen test for Sweetgreen, a brand already in the midst of a significant transformation. However, by adhering to its core values of quality, transparency, and customer focus, and by embracing a "never waste a crisis" mindset, the company has not only navigated the storm but emerged stronger. With strategic menu innovations, high-profile collaborations, and a deep-seated commitment to its founding ethos, Sweetgreen continues to redefine the fast-casual landscape, proving that even in the face of adversity, a dedication to fresh, wholesome food can prevail.
