Overview of Following the Chipotle playbook for the cyclospora crisis
This episode of The Indicator from Planet Money examines a multi-state cyclospora outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce, and how Taco Bell and Taylor Farms have responded under intense public scrutiny. Using Chipotle’s 2015 E. coli crisis as a case study, the episode explores what companies should say and do when a food safety issue may be making customers sick.
What Happened in the Cyclospora Outbreak
- State health officials in Michigan announced two deaths linked to cyclosporiasis.
- The outbreak spans nine states and has sickened nearly 2,000 people, according to the CDC.
- Investigators traced the outbreak to iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms.
- The Michigan Health Department said cyclospora is generally not life-threatening and that the people who died had serious underlying health conditions.
- Taco Bell was pulled into the story because the lettuce was served at some of its locations.
How Taco Bell and Taylor Farms Responded
Taco Bell
- After the FDA said it was investigating an outbreak linked to lettuce served at Taco Bell, the company said it voluntarily removed potentially impacted lettuce.
- Later, Taco Bell’s parent company said U.S. same-store sales were down 2% in the quarter but were recovering.
- CEO Chris Turner said online sentiment had already returned to pre-outbreak levels and that customers understood the issue was not specific to Taco Bell.
Taylor Farms
- Media reports identified Taylor Farms as the lettuce supplier.
- The company then issued a statement saying it voluntarily recalled all iceberg lettuce grown in central Mexico.
- A crisis communications expert in the episode said Taylor Farms was slower than ideal to respond, but eventually emphasized food safety and took corrective action.
Lessons from Chipotle’s 2015 Crisis
Chris Arnold, who led communications for Chipotle during its 2015 E. coli outbreak, says the key to crisis response is balancing:
- Speed: respond quickly so rumors do not fill the information vacuum.
- Discipline: do not say more than investigators have confirmed.
- Transparency: share what you know as soon as you can.
Chipotle’s experience showed that once a company is publicly linked to a foodborne illness, the damage can extend beyond the immediate outbreak if the company cannot quickly establish the cause and show it is fixing the problem.
Crisis PR Best Practices Highlighted
Timothy Coombs, a crisis communications expert, says the most effective response should:
1. Put victims first
- Public safety and well-being should be the first priority.
- Companies should avoid appearing to protect profits before people.
2. Give clear next steps
- Be specific about recalls, closures, investigations, and what customers should do.
- Avoid vague statements that sound defensive or minimized.
3. Move fast, but carefully
- A company should not speculate beyond the facts.
- But it also should not wait so long that misinformation takes over social media.
What Chipotle Did to Recover
Chipotle’s response to its E. coli crisis eventually became a model for rebuilding trust:
- It revamped food safety procedures
- It introduced DNA testing for many ingredients to screen for pathogens
- It began offering paid sick leave
- It hired a new executive director of food safety
- Its stock price fully recovered by 2019, about four years after the outbreak
Main Takeaways
- Foodborne illness crises are as much about trust and public perception as they are about science.
- The most effective company response centers victims, safety, and concrete action.
- The sooner a company identifies the source and removes it from the supply chain, the sooner it can begin rebuilding its reputation.
- Even when the issue is not unique to one brand, the public may still attach the crisis to the most visible company involved.
Closing Thought
The episode suggests that in a food safety crisis, companies cannot “rebuild the house while it’s still on fire.” First comes stopping the harm; only then can reputation repair begin.