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Chipotle is going to stop using GMOs in its food
(Facebook/Chipotle) Chipotle's tortillas contain genetically modified corn.
Chipotle is going to stop using genetically modified ingredients in its food.
"Just because food is served fast doesn't mean it has to be made with cheap raw ingredients, highly processed with preservatives and fillers and stabilizers and artificial colors and flavors," Chipotle founder and co-CEO Steve Ells told The New York Times.
Two years ago, Chipotle became the first restaurant chain to identify which menu items contained genetically modified organisms. Many other restaurants have followed suit.
Consumers have become increasingly wary of genetically modified food, believing consumption could lead to health problems such as food allergies and resistance to antibiotics.
That belief is not born out by the science, however. So far, the National Academy of Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the European Commission all agree that GMO foods are safe to eat. A large scientific study from 2013 found no "significant hazards directly connected with the use of genetically engineered crops."
Current Chipotle ingredients that contain GMOs are corn for tortillas and cooking oil.
Genetically modified ingredients are so common that it is almost impossible to eliminate them.
"They lurk in baking powder, cornstarch, and a variety of ingredients used as preservatives, coloring agents, and added vitamins, as well as in commodities like canola and soy oils, corn meal, and sugar," The Times' Stephanie Strom writes.
The brand has started advertising GMO elimination in its restaurants:
just so you know pic.twitter.com/cGXjyWMshD
— Myles Udland (@m_udland) April 27, 2015
Chipotle's high food standards have led to a shortage of its pork carnitas.
Earlier this year, Chipotle stopped serving pork at hundreds of locations after the company found that suppliers weren't meeting its standards.
The brand says it will be months before carnitas are available at all locations.
Ells told investors there was "very little supply cushion" for pork that meets the company's standards.
The company demands that its suppliers give pigs access to the outdoors, rather than raising them in cramped pens.
Ells said Chipotle had found a new supplier and would start replenishing the carnitas supply this summer.
He told The Times he did not expect the same shortages with other ingredients.
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