Sweetgreen’s terrible summer: Stock price and profits take a hit as salad aversion grips the nation

As the cyclosporiasis outbreak continues to rage across the United States, salad chains like Sweetgreen are preparing for a significant decline in sales. The company’s second quarter earnings report, released on Thursday, included a new outlook for 2026 that “reflects reduced consumer demand for fresh prepared foods due to the multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis since mid-July.” Sweetgreen now predicts same-store sales for the year will drop between 7% and 8%, worse than its previo...