Why Chipotle's GMO Labeling is Good for Consumers

AN OPEN LETTER TO CHIPOTLE

Dear Chipotle,

We've come to know you as a leader in sustainable fast food. Your business model includes unconventional practices in the fast food industry, including sourcing ingredients from local farmers, avoiding antibiotics in your meat, and cooking food fresh, on-site every day. We hope to see more companies embracing these strategies in the future.

When you released your ingredients statement yesterday, including a listing of the GMOs found in your products, my first reaction was anger. How can a sustainable fast food company use GMOs? Isn't it against everything they stand for? Chipotle is the only fast food chain I'm willing to eat at. What will I do on nights when I don't want to cook?

When I realized that the ingredients I often consume, including brown rice, crispy chips, and tortillas, contained GMOs, I contemplated what my life might look like without Chipotle. I'll boycott Chipotle, I thought! I'll make burritos at home instead, using ingredients I can source back to the farm they came from! I'll make my own tortillas from scratch! I'll start a petition! This went on for several minutes, but after reading through your statement and really considering it, I came to a different conclusion.

Transparency across all sectors is something consumers are demanding and companies are wrestling with. It's easier to hide behind websites and office buildings, and not come clean. But you chose the path of resistance. You risked losing customers. You chose to do the right thing.

Not only have you clearly stated which ingredients contain GMOs, you also outlined the measures you're taking to eliminate GMOs from your business. Switching from soybean to sunflower oil, working to improve the shelf life of tortillas naturally, and reducing artificial preservatives are important steps.

But even more importantly, you gave me a choice. As a consumer, your transparency has empowered me to make informed decisions about which toppings I'll choose for my salad bowl, or whether I'll eat at your restaurants at all.

Thank you for your honesty, for acknowledging the areas where you can do better, and for actively taking steps to improve your business practices, the fast food industry, and our food system.

Sincerely,

A loyal customer

What kind of eater are you?

A carrot isn’t just a carrot anymore. Today, the question of what to eat is loaded with implications about the life you live, your views on health, animal rights, farming, and the food future you envision for yourself and your family.  This means that the side dish you may have roasted for last night’s dinner came sprinkled with salt, pepper and politics.

What is the true origin of your carrots? Are they organic or pesticide-coated? Local or trucked from across country? Part of a seasonal CSA box or purchased on sale from your neighborhood grocery store?

It’s good to ask these questions and to know more about our food system, but as Michael Pollan points out in The Omnivore’s Dilemma, it can easily produce a fair amount of stress.  

“As a culture we seem to have arrived at a place where whatever native wisdom about eating has been replaced by confusion and anxiety. Somehow this most elemental of activities—figuring out what to eat—has come to require a remarkable amount of expert help.”

Of all the questions surrounding the food industry, one of the most basic we each must ask ourselves is What exactly should we be eating? The resources below are designed to give you the tools to learn more about the three most popular ways to eat, but the questions don't end here.

As a vegetarian, will you eat fish? If so, all fish, or only sustainable varieties? For omnivores, there are questions surrounding how often you will eat meat, which farms your meat will be sourced from, and if you’ll buy corn fed or grass fed beef. For vegans, will you ease in, gradually giving up dairy, or commit entirely by not only modifying your food habits but also the clothing and skin care products you use?

Coming to terms with our food values will take time, but simply by being here you’re on the right track. Your decision is a personal one, and will affect your giving later on, as well as the way you interact with the food community. Take a look at the resources below and begin considering where you fit on the food spectrum.

om·ni·vore/ˈämnəˌvôr/

Noun: An animal or person that eats food of both plant and animal origin.

• Eat Well Guide // A directory of sustainably-raised meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs.
• Eat Wild // The clearinghouse for information about pasture-based farming.
• Mark Bittman // New York Times columnist Mark Bittman reports on the depressing transition in our relationship to food: more fast-food chains, prepared meals and junk food, and an accompanying increase in chronic diseases and environmental degradation.
• MichaelPollan.com // Michael Pollan writes about the places where nature and culture intersect: on our plates, in our farms and gardens, and in the built environment.
• Seafood Watch // A consumer's guide for sustainable seafood, The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program helps consumers and businesses make choices for healthy oceans.

veg·e·tar·i·an/ˌvejiˈte(ə)rēən/

Noun: A person who does not eat meat, and sometimes other animal products, esp. for moral, religious, or health reasons.

• Mercy for Animals // Mercy For Animals is a 501(c)(3) non-profit animal rights organization focused on promoting a vegetarian diet.
• VegOnline // VegOnline strives to provide its readership with the best tips, advice and information on all things vegetarian from nutrition to recipes to lifestyle.
• The Vegetarian Resource Group // Vegetarian recipes and nutrition information dedicated to educating the public on vegetarianism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, ecology, and ethics.
• Vegetarian Society // The Vegetarian Society is an educational charity working to support, represent and increase the number of vegetarians in the UK and around the world.
• Vegetarian Times // The world's largest collection of vegetarian recipes.
• WildPlanet // Sustainably caught wild seafood

veg·an/ˈvēgən/

Noun: A person who does not eat or use animal products including meat, fish, eggs, dairy and honey. In addition to health, one of the most common reasons people choose a vegan diet is because of concerns over animal cruelty.

• Farm Sanctuary // Farm Sanctuary works to protect farm animals from cruelty, inspire change in the way society views and treats farm animals, and promote compassionate vegan living.
• Go Vegan USA // The mission of Go Vegan USA is to provide information and resources to our members and local chapters, to be a hub for activist networking, and to encourage others to oppose cruelty and create positive social change by adopting a plant-based diet.
• KathyFreston.com // Kathy Freston is a New York Times best-selling author of Veganist concentrates on healthy living and conscious eating.
• Mercy for Animals // Mercy For Animals is a 501(c)(3) non-profit animal rights organization focused on promoting a vegetarian diet.
• Vegan.com // Vegan.com publishes useful information for both aspiring and long-term vegans. It's also the home of Erik Marcus' daily blog and his VegTalk podcast.

Friday Food for Thought: One Italian's take on Fast Food

When McDonald's first arrived in Rome in 1986, it arches were placed in one of the city's most historic squares, Piazza di Spagna, and its opening day was met with protesters chanting "We want slow food!"

Italian journalist Carlo Petrini described the event as just an episode in the movement to make food more local and sustainable. His thoughts on the matter are simply expressed, and might make you run into the kitchen to cook!

"Fast food is chosen because it is cheap and time saving. But it takes only ten minutes to prepare a simple pasta -- a few drops of good olive oil and a bit of parmiggiano. What is better than that?"

[Tomato Tuesday] Chipotle is Missing from the Fair Food Program + More Event News

Chipotle has been on a positive publicity streak. Its Grammy commercial debut pulled heart strings and made us believe that a new sustainable future was possible. If only it factored in the workers as well as the animals into this equation. With Fair Food supporters like McDonald's and Subway, you'd think one of America's only sustainable fast food companies would make fair wages for workers and ingredient transparency a proirity. Sadly, Chipotle has yet to support the Fair Food Program outlined by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Fair Food Standards Council.

I do believe Chipotle is trying to do right by offering "food with integrity" to its customers, so I'm hopeful that they'll decide to participate. In the mean time, tell Chipotle you want it to participate in the Fair Food Program. It's the only way things will change.

Take Action

Although International Justice Mission is targeting three supermarket chains with its campaign this summer, I believe Chipotle is a key player in this movement and needs to feel some pressure from its customers.

Send a message to CEO Steve Ells and ask that Chipotle join the Fair Food program by signing the petition.

More Tomato News

Slave-free tomatoes are starting to hit the news. Last week, Take Part published an article on the subject, featuring quotes from Michael Pollan, who has submitted a recipe for IJMs Recipe for Change campaign. This article, and this one, explain the price we pay in flavor to have tomatoes turn a scarlet hue.

Food Dictionary: Cage-Free

Most cage-free chickens have their beaks cut off to avoid pecking each other to death. Since marketers took hold of the phrase "cage-free" and "free-range," they've painted pastoral pictures on egg cartons and led us to believe that cage-free actually means freedom to roam outdoors.

Here's the truth:

Grist put together an informative video about this issue and the struggle to regain control over our language. It's worth a watch!