Chipotle stock falls amid Minnesota salmonella investigation
Chipotle removed jalapeños from affected Minnesota restaurants as health officials investigated 110 salmonella cases.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
2 min read
Chipotle stock fell sharply on Aug. 4 as the chain removed jalapeños from Minnesota restaurants that received a product lot potentially connected to a salmonella investigation. The Chipotle stock Minnesota salmonella investigation news sent shares down roughly 7% to 9% during afternoon or intraday trading, according to Reuters, CNBC, Forbes and Barron's.
The company said it used its ingredient-tracing system after learning of a possible supply-chain outbreak affecting several food-service retailers. Chipotle identified jalapeños from a common lot as a possible shared ingredient and took them out of restaurants where they had been distributed, spokesperson Laurie Schalow told CNBC.
The action was precautionary and does not establish that Chipotle caused the outbreak. The chain replaced the peppers with jalapeños supplied by different growers, according to Chipotle statements reported by CNBC and CBS News.
What did Minnesota officials find in the salmonella investigation?
The Minnesota Department of Health had identified 110 cases in the investigation, CBS News reported. Among 84 Minnesotans interviewed, 75 said they had eaten at Chipotle; those visits occurred from June 14 through July 14, with most taking place between June 24 and July 2.
Those reports are part of officials' effort to identify the source of the illnesses, rather than a finding that a restaurant was the cause. Carlota Medus, a senior epidemiology supervisor at the department, told CBS News that the measures taken by Chipotle meant officials were not concerned about continued exposure at the chain.
Medus also said the case total could rise as surveillance identifies additional illnesses. She said the outbreak could still be ongoing if the implicated food item had been served elsewhere, according to CBS News.
What did Chipotle do with the jalapeños?
Chipotle removed the suspected peppers from every location that received them and substituted product from other growers, Barron's reported. Reuters, citing Bloomberg News, similarly reported that the company took the peppers out of all stores supplied with the product and was assisting Minnesota health officials with the inquiry.
The market decline reflected an immediate investor response to the potential connection. CNBC reported that Chipotle had previously been implicated in at least five foodborne-illness outbreaks from 2015 through 2018, after which it added employee training, sick days and an enhanced food-safety program.
The Minnesota investigation is separate from the cyclospora outbreak that has recently drawn consumer attention. Chipotle said it does not serve ingredients tied to that separate outbreak, CNBC reported.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.