Chipotle Faces Criminal Investigations
After norovirus, salmonella and E. coli outbreaks in 2015, Chipotle came under federal criminal investigation and changed how it prepares food.
Federal authorities have opened a criminal investigation after Chipotle sickened 98 people, and it made 234 people ill. At least 53 people are sick in multiple states.
Chipotle started getting complaints about illnesses on Tuesday, Aug. 18, and shut down its restaurant on Friday, Aug. 21.
More than 40 Chipotle restaurants were closed during the outbreak.
This outbreak has affected more than 20 people and put people in the hospital.
“The safety and well being of our customers is always our highest priority, even though the vast majority of these restaurants have no reported problems.” Chipotle
- Stock sales down by double digits
- Sales down 30% in December
- Norovirus: 140+ sickened in Boston
- Salmonella: 64 sickened in Minnesota
- And 2 E. coli outbreaks in 12 states
“As a matter of policy, we don’t discuss pending legal action, but we will cooperate fully with this investigation,” Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold told ABC News.
Boston College says around 80 of its students were sickened after eating at Chipotle, including half of the basketball team.
Chipotle closed several of its stores to clean and discard ingredients before reopening.
Chipotle is changing the way vegetables are chopped and how chicken is marinated. They are even dipping all onions in boiling water and pouring lemon juice on them to kill off the germs.
“We do not have any evidence to suggest that this incident is related to the previous E. coli incident.” Chipotle
Norovirus: highly contagious virus
Symptoms: stomach pains, nausea, fevers
Sources
- http://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/chipotle-says-it-faces-criminal-investigation-food-illness-case-n491176
- http://abcnews.go.com/Health/chipotle-vows-cooperate-fully-criminal-probe-virus-outbreak/story?id=36117397
How the federal case was settled
The investigation this article reported on in January 2016 began with a federal grand jury subpoena tied to a norovirus outbreak at a Chipotle in Simi Valley, California, in August 2015 that affected more than 200 people. A separate E. coli investigation by the CDC was closed on February 1, 2016, with 55 people infected in 11 states and no source identified. Chipotle also closed every restaurant on February 8, 2016 for an all-staff food safety meeting.
The criminal case was resolved on April 21, 2020. Chipotle entered a three-year deferred prosecution agreement in federal court in Los Angeles and agreed to pay a $25 million fine, which the Justice Department described as the largest ever imposed in a food safety case. The company was charged with adulterating food under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, in connection with outbreaks that sickened more than 1,100 people between 2015 and 2018. Under the agreement, Chipotle could avoid a conviction by following an improved food safety program.
Questions people ask
Did Chipotle face criminal charges over its outbreaks?
Yes. In April 2020 Chipotle was charged with adulterating food under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. It entered a three-year deferred prosecution agreement and agreed to pay a $25 million fine, described by the Justice Department as the largest in a food safety case. The charges covered outbreaks from 2015 to 2018 that sickened more than 1,100 people.
What caused the 2015 Chipotle outbreaks?
There were several. A norovirus outbreak in Simi Valley, California, in August 2015 affected more than 200 people. A salmonella outbreak in Minnesota that year was linked to tomatoes and sickened 64. An E. coli outbreak in late 2015 infected 55 people in 11 states with no source found, and a December norovirus outbreak near Boston College sickened about 140.
