Chipotle's Response

I signed an online petition for Chipotle to sign an agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW). Here is their thoughtful response:

We’ve never believed that you need to have a contract to do the right thing.

At Chipotle, we’ve built our business on doing what we believe is right. We have a decade-long track record of working to improve the nation’s food supply by choosing like-minded suppliers who share our belief in raising animals and growing vegetables in ways that demonstrate respect for people, animals and the environment. When we can’t find such arrangements, we use our purchasing power to influence change among those who are willing to work with us.

Most recently, this led us to negotiate a pact with East Coast Farms, one of Florida’s largest and most reputable tomato growers, in order to pay a penny a pound more for the tomatoes we buy. This additional money will be paid directly to the workers who pick our tomatoes. That might not seem like much, but it is substantial. Workers are paid a set amount for every pound of tomatoes they pick. Over just one hour, a worker typically gathers several hundred pounds of tomatoes, such that this price difference effectively amounts to a wage hike of nearly 70% for the average worker who picks our tomatoes.

But evidence of our commitment goes well beyond that. Today, Chipotle serves more naturally raised meat (from animals that are raised in a humane way, never given antibiotics or added hormones, and fed a pure vegetarian diet) than any other restaurant company. We are also the only national restaurant company to commit to serving significant amounts of organic or locally grown produce, and the first to move to dairy products made with milk from cows that are not treated with the synthetic hormone rBGH. These decisions have come at a price. In fact, Chipotle has the highest food cost in the industry because of our commitment to serving food made with ingredients from more sustainable sources.

We’ve done all of this without contracts binding us to one agenda or another, instead working to find or create opportunities to make positive changes, and pursuing those opportunities to the best of our abilities.

This most recent progress comes after months of working with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), whose campaign to improve wages and working conditions for farm workers who pick tomatoes in Florida prompted an organized effort by the Florida tomato industry to block fulfillment of similar agreements between the CIW and other large tomato buyers. By working directly with the grower, we have found an alternative that allows us to have an immediate and positive impact on the lives of people who pick tomatoes for us.

We will continue in our quest to provide Food With Integrity, always looking for suppliers who share our belief in producing food in ways that demonstrates respect for workers, animals, and the environment. And we will continue to use our purchasing power to push for change when we cannot find suitable alternatives.

-Chipotle

Chipotle Mexican Grill, 1401 Wynkoop #500, Denver, CO 80202

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) has a post today indicating their praise and appreciation for East Coast Growers and Packers and the additional penny per pound approach.

I will eat a Chipotle burrito for lunch today and keep eating at Chipotle. And I'm even more irritated with Chick-fil-A's lack of response to my questions.

Et tu, Chipotle?

I recently wrote about my reactions to Food Inc and new decisions about eating choices and behavior. Part of the change includes eating more at Chipotle (which sponsored Food Inc.). Now I have read an article about Chipotle's apparent unwillingness to work with the Florida-based Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) toward improving working conditions for migrant workers. I joked with one of my friends that since I have seen Food Inc. but have not seen The Cove, the only food I can eat is dolphin ;-)

Why is it so hard to identify a meal that ultimately doesn't harm someone or some animal?