I’m the first to admit that I’m a bit of a Chipotle fiend. In high school, I went to Chipotle at least once a week, and I always ran into at least one person I knew without fail.
Chipotle has already been a trailblazer in the industry, being the first restaurant chain to indicate which items contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs), but even more changes are on the horizon. Delivery services as well as an elimination of GMOs in almost all of their food products will begin shortly.
It turns out GMO crops are very prevalent in America, making it nearly impossible to completely eradicate GMOs from Chipotle’s menu, but it’s not for lack of trying. The food fed to their livestock and the soft drinks will most likely continue to contain GMOs but items such as fajita vegetables, rice, tortilla chips and corn and flour tortillas will be GMO-free.
Another challenge is that Whole Foods, as well as other small grocers, are dependent on the purchasing of GMO-free products. This trend has increased the demand and is proving to be a challenge in securing mass quantities of GMO-free products at a reasonable price. Nonetheless, founder and Co-Chief Executive of Chipotle Steve Ells is confident in the transition.
“This is another step toward the visions we have of changing the way people think about and eat fast food,” Ells said. “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 has already proven that the quality of their food is more valuable than profit. In the past, they have cut the availability of their carnitas upon realizing that one of its suppliers had not met their standards for raising pigs. Luckily, the switch to GMO-free ingredients did not pose as an extremely difficult task.
The majority of their 46 ingredients have been transitioned into being GMO-free, which makes the announcement appear to be more of a PR stunt than a significant change. The main difference is in their corn and soybean oil, which hopefully does not noticeably alter the delicious taste or result in a significant price increase.
However, the delivery service is completely new and highly anticipated…by some. The food delivery app Postmates partnered with Chipotle in supplying 66 cities across the country. The eligible areas in Illinois include Chicago, Evanston, Skokie, Wilmette and Winnetka.
It certainly is convenient for certain circumstances but the five- seven dollar delivery charge and nine percent service charge is steep. So unless you are extremely hung-over and the thought of moving from the couch causes you physical pain, I’m not sure if it is worth the hefty fee.
In the eyes of McDonald’s, Chipotle has become a major competitor and they have been eliminating some of their most loved products such as Cinnamon Melts in order to keep up. I realize that Chipotle is potentially taking away customers, but otherwise I think it’s ridiculous that McDonald’s is leveling themselves with restaurants like Chipotle and Panera Bread.
McDonald’s market is too large to even consider implementing Chipotle’s standards. If they began to serve more sustainably raised ingredients, they would soon realize that there are simply not enough suppliers that are willing to go the extra mile.
People know McDonald’s is greasy and fattening, but also tasty and cheap. That is their selling point; so they should stick to it. An increasing amount of people may be willing to pay for better quality, but there will always be an even larger amount of people vying for the Dollar Menu.
Locally grown, fresh, organic products have always been the foundation for Chipotle but now with the factors of GMO-free, convenient products, I only see further progress and improvement in it’s future. Now, go snag a burrito bowl guilt-free, and by the words of the famous vine kid: “I love Chipotle. Chipotle is my life.”
