When it comes to quality control Chipotle has the right idea. Talk about a company doing fast food the right way, the company
prides themselves in getting a burrito prepared and ready to eat in less than 2min with a wide variety of healthy choices. Chipotle which
once was primarily owned by McDonalds and bought back in 2006 by founder Steve Ells has gone back to there roots, providing “food
with integrity, in which you can eat the finest ingredients quickly and affordably” Ells so proudly states. But with over a 1,300 locations
how does one go about providing quality ingredients at affordable prices?
Chipotle quickly learning how most food is processed and produced in the U.S.
wanted to do things differently, paring up with local farmers and ranchers in order
to keep there products as fresh as possible. With more than 50% of there vegetables
and meats coming from local farms, the company was able to state that 45%
of there vegetables are organically grown, while there beef is 100% naturally rased,
there chicken is 100% antibiotic free, and believes in only the highest quality pork
as well with 100% hormon free pigs. There belief is that people deserve a better quality fast food chain and in return the customers are
loyal. Taking advice from small farmer they have also managed to give 10o% rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone) free cheese
and sour cream, with 30% of there dairy coming from open pasture cows which have a strictly grass fed diet. Know you might be
thinking man that a lot of facts but how did this all tie into quality control? Well Chipotle is devoted to having fresh, hormone free,
organically grown products year round and in order to do so they teamed up with Sisco and East Cost Growers and Packers to insure
that not only are there products delivered in a timely and efficient manner but also so that they can keep in touch with local farmers who
are willing to provided the restaurants with the products needed. Lastly each and every Chipotle has what the company calls a “quality
assistant manager,” who’s job it is to provided the Supply Chain team with support ensuring that the food delivered meets quality
standards. They also manage and implement all QA processes in order to monitor vendor performance, tracking and reporting, quality
inspection program, food evaluations, and stock recoveries.
So as you can see know, there is quite a lot of work put into Chipotles quality control and they dont stop there, the company is
constantly looking for better and healthier choices, in the hopes that they can compete in the market with such mexican restaurant
chains as Taco Bell, who surprising is only 3 point behind in quality score from Chipotle since there new “Cantina Bell” menu went into
effect last year. In the end do you think Chipotle is a health substitute? Are there problems in there quality control?
Sources: http://www.chipotle.com/en-us/chipotle_story/steves_story/steves_story.aspx
http://www.fastcasual.com/article/201681/Taco-Bell-closing-perception-gap-on-Chipotle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipotle_Mexican_Grill
http://newyorksmash.com/top-3-best-healthy-fast-food-restaurants-chipotle/
This makes me think about the food chain Qdoba. Would you consider this mexican food chain to be a competitor of Chipotle? I only ate there once through a catering thing so I do not actually know how the restaurant work. But to respond to your question, I think Chipotle really prides themselves to being a healthier choice, even though it was owned by McDonalds at one point or another. When I think of fast food I don’t think that they are really healthy. Even though Chipotle has many quality control, I believe at some point it will lose that, which I hope it would not since I love the restaurant. I appreciate the quality control on the ingredients, but how are they keeping it all together for such a large and growing stores? Are they getting their ingredients from a set location (one or two suppliers) or are they dividing up their stores into region with different farmers and ranchers? I just wonder how they manage their farmers and ranchers while keeping the costs low since I know many of my friends would rather get a cheaper alternative of this ‘mexican’ food. (Apparently Chipotle is not really mexican food. Sorry to burst anyone bubble. I still love it nonetheless).
Chipotle only claim is that their ingredients are free of hormones.Their portion size is rather large and their options are high in calories and fat. A burrito bol with Rice, Black Beans, Barbacoa, Hot Salsa, Lettuce, Cheese, Sour Cream has the nutrition facts of:
Serving Size: 1 bowl, Calories: 685, Fat: 31g, Carbs: 58g, Protein: 45g
And this is not including guacamole, which I personally love. I think Chipotle is like any other restaurant; it’s a treat to have every now and then but should not be considered a healthy option.
I think this is a very interesting article to write about. I know many people, including myself, who love Chipotle and choose it over many other (fast food) places constantly. I knew that Chipotle is “better“ than many fast food places; however I was not aware of the fact that most of their ingredients were organically grown and their beef was completely naturally raised. They have their signs when you walk in stating that their food is healthier than most places, but I never really took the time to read it. Most people eat it because it tastes great and consider it to be a healthy alternative to many other places, with fresh ingredients that you choose yourself. In a way they trick people into thinking that just because their ingredients are organic and their meat is naturally raised, it is healthy, however, people who have their research know otherwise. Many of the toppings are full of fat and calories, making it like any other restaurant and definitely not a healthy substitute.
When we think of “healthier” we usually think of a low calorie count and reduced fat or sometimes no added sugar or no high fructose corn syrup but I wouldn’t really consider things with a low calorie count a better option. Your body needs calories and certain fats and lipids to maintain its daily functions. If you think about it 685 calories is really not that much for a substantial lunch portion and if you look at how much food/ingredients you get I think it reasonable. I go to Chipotle when I’m hungry and want something delicious that will fill me up and keep me going throughout my day until the next chance i have time to eat…Without ranting too much and providing all types of statistics about what an average person should consume a day, if you look at your fast food options I would definitely consider Chipotle a healthier option.
In regards to the way Chipotle gets their ingredients and their QC, I think they are doing a good job and its working for them. Hopefully they can keep this going because I believe it makes them stand out from other restaurants. Having naturally raised and hormone free meat helps put them in the healthier food category as well as adds to the quality of the product.
I agree with the general consensus about Chipotle’s QC. I’m glad that they have been devoting to organics and not using meat or cheese that comes from hormone-fed animals, despite the issues that must cause by having to coordinate those efforts nationwide. I don’t really think that they can be strictly called “healthy” though. Certainly getting food there is healthier than getting a slice of pizza or going to McDonald’s, and if you’re careful you can keep the calories and fat down. It is almost impossible however not to overload on sodium there. If you get any sort of burrito with meat, it will have at least half a day’s worth of sodium. Even a vegetarian salad could pass that 50% daily value of sodium level easily. So if you’re careful, a meal from Chipotle can be healthy, but I would struggle to call Chipotle healthy as a whole.
I think Chipotle is healthier compared to other fast food restaurants that mainly offer deep fried food. Even though some of the food that Chipotle offers is high in calories like guacamole, it is full with good nutrients. Moreover, I like the idea that they are trying to improve quality of their products by using locally and organically grown ingredients, and each location has its own quality assistant manager to control and oversee the quality of food. This helps Chipotle differentiate itself from the rest of Mexican restaurant chains and other fast food restaurants. However, most restaurants fail to maintain a good quality control since it is not an easy task. I hope that Chipotle will be able to keep up the quality of their products.