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I think it's really silly to make this about organic or sustainable ingredients. It's a simple matter of food safety, handling & cooking food correctly. All the

I think it's really silly to make this about organic or sustainable ingredients. It's a simple matter of food safety, handling & cooking food correctly. All the talk about "smugness" smacks of ressentiment. Not a good look.

mc32 11y ago
But it's only pointing out that Chipotle makes a bit deal about its ingredients and how they are good for you --which is well and good, but they overlook the food safety side while stressing the benefits of their ingredients which they market as being superior.... So, perhaps they use superior ingredients but it's immaterial if at the end of the day their food safety suffers. Additionally, it points out that on a good day, local (within 350 miles) supplies only account for 10% of their ingredients and they tend not to advertise the fact that they use the same supply chain economies of scale whereby their beans, meats and salsas are prepared by third parties then shipped to restaurants.
- dragonwriter 11y ago
  > But it's only pointing out that Chipotle makes a bit deal about its ingredients and how they are good for you I think its more accurate to say that Chipotle makes a big deal about how its ingredients follow the latest food fashion trends.
asift 11y ago
There are legitimate health risks associated with shunning modern technology in favor of organic food: >"Contrary to popular wisdom, organic produce is not pesticide-free. Instead, it’s grown with primitive pesticides that can be significantly more hazardous to humans and to the environment. Organic agriculture also lacks the benefits of the many crops genetically improved with modern molecular techniques, like Bt-corn, which reduces the population of insects that allow toxic molds to infest corn. (Organic corn has higher levels of the toxins produced by these molds.)" >"Chipotle rejects modern synthetic fertilizers in favor of suppliers who use manure on their crops. This approach may be “all natural” and “organic” and make some customers feel warm and fuzzy, but it should not come as a surprise that applying stool, feces and excrement to growing fruits and vegetables significantly raises the risk of spreading disease. Bruce M. Chassy, food science professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana scoured U.S. Food and Drug Administration data to conclude that organic food is four to eight times more likely to be recalled over safety concerns than conventionally grown products." Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/henrymiller/2015/12/14/chipotle-the-long-defeat-of-doing-nothing-well/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/henrymiller/2015/12/14/chipotle-...
- cwyers 11y ago
  Right. Modern agriculture wasn't invented because people were bored or stupid, it was because pre-modern agriculture made lots of people either sick or malnourished.
URSpider94 11y ago
It's more about preparing fresh food at scale. It's really hard to handle large amounts of raw veggies (cilantro, lettuce, and tomatoes). If these get contaminated in the field, a restaurant kitchen can't clean them well enough. Restaurants that process their ingredients in a central kitchen can put ingredients through more aggressive sanitation treatments, and deliver them to stores pre-processed. But, that doesn't come across as particularly fresh or local.
Fomite 11y ago
They pushed me over the edge with their entirely anti-science (and hypocritical given they still sell soda) stance on GMOs. You don't get to parade around a slogan like "Food With Integrity" and fail as hard as they have.
- ArtDev 11y ago
  The anti-gmo thing is a stupid fad. Unfortunately, they have to follow it until people either get educated about the issue or blindly follow the next food fad. Most likely the latter. That said, the food IS more wholesome. As long as it stays that way, I will take my chances.
  - specialist 11y ago
    Which parts are stupid? The notion that GMO food should be labeled? Opposing roundup ready strains (and the like), because it causes super bugs? Or objections to treating life as IP, because it enables rent seeking, enabling mega corps to further put the squeeze on independent, indigenous farmers? Farmers whose crops get contaminated by GMO strains, forcing Big Ag to sue them into oblivion, should have done a better job controlling the weather and pollinators? Maybe you think butterflys are a nuisance and the people that like them are nuts?
  - dragonwriter 11y ago
    > The anti-gmo thing is a stupid fad. Unfortunately, they have to follow it Plenty of restaurants, including large chains, are not. They choose to follow (and, at the same time, promote) it, they don't "have to".
allengeorge 11y ago
In fact, at one point the article states "Because restaurants from Oregon to New York served contaminated food, the problem most likely originated with one of Chipotle’s big suppliers, not one of the local farms."

mc32 11y ago

But it's only pointing out that Chipotle makes a bit deal about its ingredients and how they are good for you --which is well and good, but they overlook the food safety side while stressing the benefits of their ingredients which they market as being superior.... So, perhaps they use superior ingredients but it's immaterial if at the end of the day their food safety suffers. Additionally, it points out that on a good day, local (within 350 miles) supplies only account for 10% of their ingredients and they tend not to advertise the fact that they use the same supply chain economies of scale whereby their beans, meats and salsas are prepared by third parties then shipped to restaurants.

dragonwriter 11y ago
> But it's only pointing out that Chipotle makes a bit deal about its ingredients and how they are good for you I think its more accurate to say that Chipotle makes a big deal about how its ingredients follow the latest food fashion trends.

asift 11y ago

There are legitimate health risks associated with shunning modern technology in favor of organic food: >"Contrary to popular wisdom, organic produce is not pesticide-free. Instead, it’s grown with primitive pesticides that can be significantly more hazardous to humans and to the environment. Organic agriculture also lacks the benefits of the many crops genetically improved with modern molecular techniques, like Bt-corn, which reduces the population of insects that allow toxic molds to infest corn. (Organic corn has higher levels of the toxins produced by these molds.)" >"Chipotle rejects modern synthetic fertilizers in favor of suppliers who use manure on their crops. This approach may be “all natural” and “organic” and make some customers feel warm and fuzzy, but it should not come as a surprise that applying stool, feces and excrement to growing fruits and vegetables significantly raises the risk of spreading disease. Bruce M. Chassy, food science professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana scoured U.S. Food and Drug Administration data to conclude that organic food is four to eight times more likely to be recalled over safety concerns than conventionally grown products." Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/henrymiller/2015/12/14/chipotle-the-long-defeat-of-doing-nothing-well/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/henrymiller/2015/12/14/chipotle-...

cwyers 11y ago
Right. Modern agriculture wasn't invented because people were bored or stupid, it was because pre-modern agriculture made lots of people either sick or malnourished.

URSpider94 11y ago

It's more about preparing fresh food at scale. It's really hard to handle large amounts of raw veggies (cilantro, lettuce, and tomatoes). If these get contaminated in the field, a restaurant kitchen can't clean them well enough. Restaurants that process their ingredients in a central kitchen can put ingredients through more aggressive sanitation treatments, and deliver them to stores pre-processed. But, that doesn't come across as particularly fresh or local.

Fomite 11y ago

They pushed me over the edge with their entirely anti-science (and hypocritical given they still sell soda) stance on GMOs. You don't get to parade around a slogan like "Food With Integrity" and fail as hard as they have.

ArtDev 11y ago
The anti-gmo thing is a stupid fad. Unfortunately, they have to follow it until people either get educated about the issue or blindly follow the next food fad. Most likely the latter. That said, the food IS more wholesome. As long as it stays that way, I will take my chances.
- specialist 11y ago
  Which parts are stupid? The notion that GMO food should be labeled? Opposing roundup ready strains (and the like), because it causes super bugs? Or objections to treating life as IP, because it enables rent seeking, enabling mega corps to further put the squeeze on independent, indigenous farmers? Farmers whose crops get contaminated by GMO strains, forcing Big Ag to sue them into oblivion, should have done a better job controlling the weather and pollinators? Maybe you think butterflys are a nuisance and the people that like them are nuts?
- dragonwriter 11y ago
  > The anti-gmo thing is a stupid fad. Unfortunately, they have to follow it Plenty of restaurants, including large chains, are not. They choose to follow (and, at the same time, promote) it, they don't "have to".

allengeorge 11y ago

In fact, at one point the article states "Because restaurants from Oregon to New York served contaminated food, the problem most likely originated with one of Chipotle’s big suppliers, not one of the local farms."