Chipotle seen and heard: apologies, stock prices, recovery and another outlet shut

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Ben Chapman

The saga of Chipotle’s food safety woes continued today. This morning, according to Business Insider, Chipotle CEO Steve Ells hit the Today Show to talk about one of their current outbreaks (the E. coli O26 one, not the norovirus one).

“This was a very unfortunate incident and I’m deeply sorry that this happened,” Ells said on NBC’s Today Show. “But the procedures we’re putting in place today are so above industry norms that we are going to be the safest place to eat.” Ells said it’s a “really tough time” for Chipotle.

“We have closed our restaurants out of an abundance of caution and tested all the ingredients, surfaces — thousands and thousands of tests — and they call came back negative for E. coli,” Ells said.

A team of epidemiologists and food-safety experts has investigated the delivery, handling, cooking, and serving of all 64 of Chipotle’s ingredients, and developed better food-safety standards for the chain going forward.

“It has caused us to put in practices … that will put us 10 to 15 years ahead of industry norms and I believe this will be the safest restaurants to eat at,” Ells said.

I’m still not sure what this means. Or what it is that Chipotle plans to do that is so revolutionary, but since food safety isn’t a competitive issue; I’m sure they’ll share the details.

In related news, Chipotle’s stock rebounded with a five per cent bump following Ells pledge for better food safety.

James Surowiecki of the New Yorker compares Chipotle to Jack-in-the-Box which still carries stigma over 20 years after a devastating and tragic outbreak.

Chipotle can take solace in the knowledge that Jack in the Box did eventually recover, and indeed prospered. And Chipotle has advantages that Jack in the Box did not. Its reputation for quality before the crisis was stronger, which means that the reservoir of good will among customers is higher. It is also the market leader in the fast-casual category—a sector it essentially created—rather than an also-ran, as Jack in the Box was. Still, those advantages only go so far. There are now myriad good fast-casual alternatives in much of the country. Customer loyalty is no longer what it was—consumers are far more likely to abandon brands when they disappoint. And while Chipotle has said that it is introducing more stringent testing and reassessing its food-handling practices, its reliance on local suppliers means that the task of insuring the integrity of its supply chain will be harder than what Jack in the Box faced.

Oh, and according to Bloomberg, one of Chipotle’s Seattle outlets that was closed last month during the O26 investigation, and then reopened, was closed again today after an inspector found deficient handling practices including temperature control issues.

The public-health department for Seattle and King County closed the restaurant, which was located in the city’s South Lake Union neighborhood, according to a statement from the agency on Thursday.

In Seattle, an inspector found that food wasn’t being kept hot enough on a line that prepares takeout orders, said Chris Arnold, a spokesman for Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. “We are looking into the cause of that and will certainly address it,” he said in an e-mail.

FiveThirtyEight analyzes Chipotle’s norovirus outbreak

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Ben Chapman

I’ve been a fan of Nate Silver’s fivethirtyeight.com for a few years. It’s one of a handful of sites that I read daily. Today the numbers nerds tackled the Chipotle norovirus outbreak comparing it to other fast food outbreaks using CDC’s databases. Turns out this outbreak is unique for its size and location – at a fast food setting.

Just under 3 percent of the food-related norovirus outbreaks that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracked from 2009 to 20141sickened 80 or more people. Only 1.3 percent of outbreaks sickened 140 or more people. Half of all outbreaks sickened 11 or fewer people.

It’s not just the size of the outbreak that’s unusual — it’s where it happened. Although norovirus is the most common cause of food-related illnesses nationwide (about 50 percent of outbreaks), it’s not the most common cause of illnesses at fast-food outlets like Chipotle. Since 2009, when the CDC began tracking where outbreaks occurred, fast-food restaurants have been much more likely to give their patrons salmonella than norovirus (28 percent of illnesses at fast-food chains were linked to norovirus, while 43 percent were linked to salmonella). Sit-down restaurants have the opposite risk profile (45 percent of illnesses linked to norovirus, 25 percent to salmonella).

And here’s some more context from CDC on where norovirus outbreaks happen.

Chipotle seen and heard (there’s a lot going on)

Posted on December 10, 2015 by Ben Chapman

As norovirus was confirmed at a Boston-area Chipotle (marking the 5th confirmed outbreak in the past 6 months), Chipotle officials took the airwaves to talk about how they plan on responding.

Phil Wahba of Fortune writes that cases linked to a Cleveland Circle Chipotle have climbed to 120.

Boston College said Wednesday the number of students suffering from symptoms consistent with the Norovirus is now 120, up from an estimate of 30 earlier this week. The school said, “Nearly all cases are related to students who ate at the Chipotle restaurant in Cleveland Circle” last weekend. Chipotle has temporarily closed that location.

According to Nation’s Restaurant News, Chipotle plans on doing some radical things (although they have yet to reveal the details of what their new standards are).

In a presentation to Wall Street analysts at the annual Bernstein Consumer Summit in New York, officials with the Denver-based chain laid out a plan for improving food safety that they contend will put Chipotle 10 to 20 years ahead of industry norms.

“We have this desire to be the safest place to eat,” said Steve Ells, Chipotle chairman, founder and co-CEO.

Meanwhile, Chipotle is investing heavily in food safety with new protocols that will include more testing of fresh produce.

Just as suppliers are asked to meet certain standards under the chain’s Food With Integrity mission, produce suppliers will be held to higher standards in terms of food safety, Ells said.

“There will be robust testing procedures that will need to be in place for all of our suppliers, whether large or small,” he said. “Some of the smaller suppliers might have a hard time implementing these robust testing procedures initially. We’ll help them. Not all will be on board, for sure, but we think most will.”

But, because “it’s impossible to test every tomato,” the chain is taking additional operational steps, Ells said.

For example, Chipotle has begun dicing tomatoes in a commissary, putting them through a “sanitary kill step” to eliminate pathogens, and hermetically sealing them for delivery to restaurants.

I’m interested in what this sanitary kill step is, and what data they have that validates it. Is it a 5- or 7-log reduction kill step? Or a 1- to 2-log reduction one?

The PR world is analyzing Chipotle’s communications reresponse and according to CNBC, they aren’t doing great.

“They’re not going far enough,” Gene Grabowski, who runs the crisis group at kglobal, told CNBC. “They’re not painting pictures with their words,” he said. “They’re still doing too much explaining.”

They aren’t really explaining enough what they actually plan – paint the picture of a company that has a good food safety culture, and implement it.

In related news, Chipotle stocks continue to fall, but have no fear, significant traffic driving initiatives (whatever those are) will bring the people back.

In a report published Wednesday, Sara Senatore of Bernstein maintained a bullish stance on Chipotle’s stock even though she acknowledged that Chipotle’s brand has been “diminished” following the recent E. coli outbreak. However, the analyst noted that once the CDC gives the “all clear,” the company should benefit from “significant traffic driving initiatives.

Senatore said Chipotle is likely to initiate a series of initiatives including an up-tick in “traditional marketing,” including social media outreach and direct mail – which may consist of buy-one-get-one free offers and other discounting that have “proven very effective” for the company in the past. Naturally, these initiatives will result in gross margin pressure in the near term, but margin recovery should “materialize over time” as management realizes efficiencies and benefits from improvements in technology and throughput.

Here’s a significant Traffic driving initiative for you.

Boston chipotle closed after 80 illnesses; employee worked while ill

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Ben Chapman

Things aren’t good for Chipotle. Here’s the list of recent outbreaks: E. coli in Seattle, Salmonella in Minnesota, Norovirus i portland-press-herald_3512878-300x235 n California and E. coli O26 and in at least 9 states. All of that since July.

And now, according to NBC news, over 80 ill Boston College students (and probably others) have been linked to a eating at a Chipotle in Cleveland Circle. Environmental health folks shut the restaurant following an investigation revealed an employee worked while ill.

Not good.

City health officials ordered the outlet closed after an inspection showed the cooked chicken used to make burritos, tacos and other dishes was being kept at too low a temperature, an employee worked while showing signs of illness and because of the reports of possible foodborne illness.

Chipotle said it had voluntarily closed the restaurant in the Brighton section of the city.

“All 80 students have confirmed that they ate at the Chipotle Restaurant in Cleveland Circle during the weekend,” Boston College said in a statement.

“All have been tested for both E. coli and the norovirus. Test results will not be available for at least two days.”

200 stricken with Norovirus at Seattle office building

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Douglas Powell

At least 150 people who responded to a survey put out to guests who attended a catered event at the Russell Investments Center Building in downtown Seattle last Tuesday, report feeling ill afterwards.

An additional 50 cases were reported directly to Public Health — Seattle & King County.

Health department investigators have sent surveys to 600 people who attended the event. As of Monday morning, only 200 have responded.

All food service operations in the building at 1301 2nd Avenue have been shut down during the investigation and cleaning process.

Health officials believe a private cafeteria inside the building may have been where the virus started.

Norovirus is highly contagious and quickly causes sickness. It’s believed that people who may have been sickened by food then spread the virus.

‘When I pay an average of over $10 a meal I expect quality food and not poisonous meals’

Posted on December 7, 2015 by Ben Chapman

A dining hall at Chapman University (no relation) was closed over the past couple of days after students came down with nausea, vomit and diarrhea. According to The Panther, health authorities believe that the illnesses are linked to a norovirus outbreak.

According to an email sent by Jerry Price, dean of students and vice chancellor for student affairs, the cafeteria will reopen for breakfast on Dec. 7 and throughout the weekend food will be available in the Student Union for students with meal plans.

“It doesn’t make me scared necessarily, however it’s a bit concerning since I’m on a 19 meal plan and I get a majority of my meals from the cafeteria,” wrote Michael Anderson, a sophomore television writing and production major. “When I pay an average of over $10 a meal I expect quality food and not poisonous meals.”

Kyler Asato, a freshman creative writing major, had lunch at the cafeteria last Wednesday and then lost his appetite. On Thursday he did not eat until 5:20 p.m. after nearly fainting during his dance class.

Asato said that he ate a sandwich and muffin from the Digital Media Arts Center. He then had a pizza from Doy’s Place which caused him to vomit.

“I went back to my room after around 45 minutes of not being able to move due to lack of energy,” Asato wrote. “Then, I had my friend give me Sprite, and went to sleep around 10. I woke up three times and barfed each time. I also had diarrhea at least four times throughout the day, starting from 11 a.m.”

Sounds nasty.

Brae Surgeoner, Doug and I had a paper published in the September 2009 Journal of Environmental Health about some research we conducted in the Winter of 2006. The study came about because a whole bunch of kids in the University of Guelph’s residence system started puking from an apparent norovirus outbreak. There were lots of handwashing signs up and we wanted to know whether they changed hygiene behavior (especially if kids were using the tools available when entering the cafeteria). Turns out that students weren’t doing as good of a job at hand hygiene as they reported to us.

My noro nightmare: vomit on a plane

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Ben Chapman

A few years ago I had a noro nightmare.

Jack, my then four-year-old son, and I were visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Calgary (that’s in Canada). I was there for a talk, Jack tagged along to hang out with the fam – and so we could buy him hockey equipment (there’s way more selection in the true north).

As we went from store to store, in and out of the car, Jack said that his stomach hurt. I asked him what would make him feel better and he suggested eating Doritos would do the trick.

Ten minutes later, half a bag in, Jack yacked all over the car.

We went home, he stayed on the couch all day complaining of stomach cramps. He fell asleep around 6pm.

We left for the airport at 5am the following morning and he puked in the car (and all over his clothes) again.

After going through security and customs we boarded our first flight to Minnesota. Jack seemed to be better and wasn’t complaining of nausea. When we got to our connection airport he talked me into buying him an ice cream sundae. It wasn’t my proudest parenting moment.

Back in the air about an hour following the dessert-for-lunch meal and all was fine. Until we hit some turbulence as we approached Raleigh. The shaking plane triggered another round of puke, which ended up on him and the window.

The flight attendants responded quickly, and provided me with plastic bags to contain the pukey clothes and coffee pods to manage the smell.

Because there are some sympathy yackers out there.

The flight crew let us off the plane first (although we were in the second-to-last row). I picked Jack up with one arm, carried the vomit-covered clothes bag in the other with our carry-on strapped on my back. I squeezed down the aisle, potentially inoculating the plane with norovirus.

The post-script to the story is that while I didn’t get sick (surprising since I handled all the puke) my brother and sister-in-law did. And maybe a few other passengers.

‘Highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene’ 56 sickened in Norovirus outbreak at UK bar

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Douglas Powell

Fifty-six people who fell ill after attending functions at a bar in Bridgend county had the norovirus, it has been confirmed.

Public Health Wales said the Hi-Tide bar in Porthcawl remains open after the outbreak of diarrhoea and vomiting.

The outbreak has now been declared over.

A bar spokesman said: “We are confident that we provided, and will continue to provide, the very highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene.”

“We would like to wish all those affected a full and speedy recovery,” the spokesman added.

Pumpkin carving gathering linked to noro outbreak

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Ben Chapman

As my kids get older I start to relive my youth. Last week’s Halloweeen festivities reminded me of costume parades, classroom pumpkin carving competitions and seed roasting.

All shared activities, which turnout to be pretty good norovirus sharing grounds. F2XEZKMG1BB7VQI.MEDIUM

According to the Register Guard, over 100 students and teachers at a Eugene, Oregon school were out with norovirus symptoms following pumpkin carving festivities.

One of two pumpkin-carving events held prior to Halloween may have been the cause of a suspected norovirus outbreak at O’Hara Catholic School, Lane County officials say.

The school welcomed students and staff back to class Tuesday following an extended five-day weekend after the outbreak caused at least 100 people to fall ill. School Principal Tammy Conway said about 40 percent of students were absent on Tuesday.

The long weekend came after 16 staff and faculty members of the school on West 18th Avenue called in sick last Thursday, prompting administrators to cancel classes and close the school for the remainder of the week.

Jason Davis, spokesman for Lane County Health and Human Services, said on Tuesday that after ruling out several other potential causes, a pumpkin-related incident could be the culprit.

Davis stressed that a confirmed culprit for the virus has not yet been identified, though a number of different leads have been ruled out, including a staff-wide breakfast.

“A lot of parents just decided to keep their kids home as a precaution, which isn’t really necessary at this point,” he said.

Norovirus is extremely contagious and usually transmitted when someone accidentally gets traces of stool or vomit from an infected person in their mouth, according to Davis. He said the virus is transported primarily by fecal matter, either in food or on hard surfaces, and is not transmitted through the air.

Not quite There’s some nice science out of the NoroCORE project that shows aerosolization is possible.

Philadelphia: Ingredients not on menu

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Douglas Powell

The Philadelphia Inquirer continues its efforts to improve restaurant inspection disclosure in the City of Brotherly Love.

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health keeps its restaurant inspection reports secret for 30 days, unnecessarily risking the health of unsuspecting diners at restaurants with serious hygiene problems.

Philadelphia’s is the only health department in the nation’s 10 largest cities that has such an asinine policy, as Philly.com reported last week. Phoenix takes 72 hours to process its reports and make them public, while the rest – including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles – publish them immediately.

Within Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh also posts inspection reports immediately. So do Bucks, Montgomery, and Chester Counties. Across the Delaware, Camden and Burlington Counties post the information online within five days. A metropolis like Philadelphia should be able to keep up.

A health department spokesman told Philly.com that sanitation reports are kept confidential for a month to give establishments time to challenge them. It’s fine to allow restaurants to appeal inspectors’ findings, but not at the expense of diners who deserve to know if a restaurant’s cleanliness has been questioned. Besides, there have been only four such appeals since 2009.

The 30-day grace period is too long. It suggests that the health department lacks confidence in its inspectors’ ability to evaluate sanitary conditions. If that is the case, then rather than err on the side of a restaurant that may have a rat or roach problem, the department should improve its inspectors’ skills and reduce the possibility of inaccurate assessments.

The department’s website (www.phila.gov/health/foodprotection/FoodSafetyReports.html) notes that every inspection report is a “snapshot” that “may not be representative of the overall, long-term sanitation and safety status of an establishment.” That’s an important caveat. But it doesn’t mean that having carefully cultivated a reputation for fine dining, Philadelphia should risk it by being too slow to point out which of its restaurants should be avoided.

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Category Archives: Norovirus