Salad and Go files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid cyclospora

Salad and Go has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and is closing all existing locations on Wednesday.

The company said in a statement to CNBC that it sought bankruptcy protection due to prior strategic growth challenges, weakening consumer demand and higher costs.

Diner fears around eating lettuce due to the ongoing cyclospora outbreak only worsened its issues. The water-borne parasite has sickened at least 10,000 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Two people have died have died as a result of the outbreak, the Michigan Health Department said Monday.

“A Cyclospora outbreak in July, in which Salad and Go was not implicated, weakened confidence across the industry and compounded these challenges,” the company said in the statement.

The foodborne illness outbreak has hurt more businesses than just Salad and Go.

Yum Brands’ Taco Bell saw its traffic plunge after the Food and Drug Administration linked iceberg lettuce served at some of its restaurants to the outbreak; the chain pulled the affected supply, and Yum executives have said that sales are already recovering. Other chains not linked to outbreak, like Chipotle Mexican Grill, have also seen their sales dip due to consumers’ newfound mistrust of fresh lettuce.

Founded in 2013, Salad and Go at one time aimed to take on Sweetgreen. It used commissary kitchens to wash its produce and prepare protein options, like chicken, before shipping out the ingredients to the restaurants that would assemble its salads or wraps.

Private equity firm Volt Investment took a stake in Salad and Go and eventually bought out company founders Tony and Roushan Christofellis in 2021. Under then-CEO Charlie Morrison, who previously led Wingstop and currently heads Jersey Mike’s, Salad and Go pursued an ambitious expansion plan, more than doubling its store count. Morrison left the company in late 2024, reportedly after disagreements with the board.

Former Krispy Kreme CEO Mike Tattersfield took the reins in 2025. During his tenure, Salad and Go closed dozens of stores in Texas and Oklahoma. Those closures whittled the company’s footprint down to about 70 locations in Arizona and Nevada, which will be permanently shuttered on Wednesday.

“This is a painful day for everyone who built, worked for and loved Salad and Go,” Tattersfield said in a statement.

Salad and Go has assets valued between $500 million and $1 billion and liabilities in the same range, according to the company’s bankruptcy filing on Tuesday.