Chipotle food safety crisis: Restaurant closed Feb. 8

During a break between classes, you decide to leave campus and grab some food.

The Chipotle on Walton and Adams is a go-to for quick, fresh and moderately-priced Mexican food.

However, you may have second thoughts, because now the chain is under fire after several outbreaks of contaminated food.

More than 500 customers across 10 states have been sickened from E. coli, norovirus and Salmonella, according to The New York Times.

The food safety crisis began back in July, when customers in Seattle were infected with E. coli.

Since then, there have been other major outbreaks. This includes 234 people contracting the norovirus in Simi Valley, California, in August of 2015. There was also a norovirus outbreak in Boston, affecting at least 136 people, according to The New York Times. There have been no outbreaks in Michigan.

Even so, Emily Ogilvie, a senior psychology major, is especially alarmed because she has eaten at Chipotle with her 3-year-old child.

“As a mom, I cannot imagine how I would feel if it had been my daughter who had gotten ill,” she said.

Even if you remain a loyal fan, don’t plan on going Feb. 8. According to CNN Money, more than 1,900 Chipotle restaurants will shut down across the country on that day to discuss food safety changes.

On Feb. 8, Chipotles will begin to close at 11 a.m. and reopen at 3 p.m. the same day.

The company’s headquarters announced it has partnered with the food safety testing company IEH Laboratories to implement adjustments in ingredient handling and crew training, according to Business Insider.

One major change is prepping many non-meat ingredients like cheese, tomatoes and cilantro at centralized locations. This will allow Chipotle to test samples of these ingredients before they are shipped out to restaurants, according to Consumerist.

The situation is especially disturbing as there were five different sources of contamination.

Both E. coli and Salmonella are bacterial pathogens. This means they are from produce that hasn’t been properly washed or refrigerated, as stated in Business Insider.

However, according to Business Insider, the norovirus is transmitted by people and is often found in vomit or fecal matter. Therefore, Chipotle is dealing with multiple health problems.

After reading about the situation online, Andrew Hutcheson, a junior in management information systems, was shocked.

“500 is a pretty high number for contamination, and the fact that there were five different outbreaks makes me think that the stores’ cleanliness and/or food prep procedures are either not being enforced or are not up to par. Either way they need to crack down on it,” Hutcheson said in an email.

According to The New York Times, Chipotle has since announced the Salmonella outbreak came from fresh tomatoes and the norovirus infection was caused by sick workers who ignored company policy about staying home when ill. They are still looking into the source of the E. coli outbreak.

This has done much damage to Chipotle. It reported its sales fell 30 percent in December, according to the Chicago Tribune.

In efforts to win back customers, Chipotle announced there will be more free food giveaways.

According to CNBC, Chipotle co-CEO Monty Moran said restaurant managers will be allowed to give away twice the amount of free food as in the past.

It will be up to each manager to decide the giveaways.

If you’re looking to cater your Super Bowl party, Chipotle will offer a discount. The first 1,500 catering orders received before Feb. 1 will get $50 off. This includes orders of 20 or more of the “Burritos by the Box,” according to AdvertisingAge.

They will also get a limited-edition gift from the makers of Tabasco, the pepper sauce company.

Ogilvie still feels she will eat at Chipotle.

“Given the amount of bad press they have gotten, I imagine that they are now far more cautious than ever before. At this point in time, they are probably a relatively safe place to eat considering all of the new precautions being put into place,” Ogilvie said.

Will this information deter you from consuming another burrito with double chicken and a side of guac? Chipotle hopes not.

Possible Headlines:

1)      Chipotle food safety crisis: Restaurant closed Feb. 8

  1. Sub headline – More free food giveaways planned to win you back

2)      Chipotle food contamination: More than 500 sickened across 10 states

  1. Sub headline – Restaurant closed Feb. 8 nationwide to discuss safety changes

3)      Think twice before you choose Chipotle

  1. Sub headline – Multiple outbreaks of food contamination sicken more than 500