“Food With Integrity” chain experiences E. coli outbreak

By Taylor Navis and Sarah Seifert

Chipotle, once an escape for a hungry college student’s appetite, is now the face of questionable integrity and considerable ridicule after its E. coli outbreak earlier this month.

Foodborne illness surveillance site Food Poison journal ran an article on the poisoning, and even satirical news source The Onion spoofed Chipotle customers’ traditionally unwavering loyalty to the Mexican fast-casual chain. With Chipotle claiming their restaurants outside of Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon are safe to eat at, according to Chipotle’s website, can we really trust the chain after this?

Since August 2015, Chipotle has experienced three different outbreaks: Norovirus, Salmonella and now E. coli, according to a USA Today chart. This also is not the first time Chipotle has experienced an E. coli outbreak: in September 2009, 29 people were reported ill with E. coli.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Brad Schulz, a sophomore music major at Indiana University, went to a Chipotle near his campus Nov. 1. He wasn’t informed about the outbreak or if the Chipotle he entered had the possibility of being contaminated, “I feel like they should have made me aware of it as I came up to order, before I even ordered anything.” Yes, Schulz felt wronged but in regards to going back to Chipotle, “Maybe sometime in the future.”

In the wake of the E. coli controversy, Chipotle has experienced several negative rumors, including one suggesting all locations might be closed due to the use of dog and cat meat in their stores, according to Business Insider.  Although the gossip’s source was satirical Twitter account @conspiracystory, the tweets regarding Chipotle’s meat were liked and retweeted over 8,000 times.  Tensions about one of the nation’s trendiest Mexican food chains are running high.

As of Nov. 10, however, Chipotle announced on their website that they will be re-opening the 43 closed restaurants after listing several measures they took:

“Conducting additional deep cleaning and sanitization in all of our restaurants nationwide, replacing all ingredients in the closed restaurants, confirming that none of our employees in these restaurants had E. coli. (Note: No Chipotle employees have had E. coli stemming from this incident), and working with health officials to improve food-handling procedures.”

Critics are less willing to trust the chain’s reassurance. “The company’s focus on such buzzy items as local farms and non-GMOs, while generating the appearance of caution, ultimately distracts us from the more prosaic measures that a fast food (OK, fine, fast casual) chain needs to take in order to be consistently safe—precautions that even the best marketing genius can’t sex up,” says James McWilliams of the Pacific Standard.

These weren’t the only measures Chipotle took, but there’s one thing they haven’t completed yet: identifying the cause of the E. coli outbreak. According to NBC News, the outbreak seems to be over, and even though the chain has been conducting tests, a link to a specific ingredient hasn’t been discovered yet.

Does this mean contaminated products still linger out there? Are we safe?

Stacy Reise, a native of Green Bay, Wisconsin, felt betrayed after hearing about the outbreak. Reise went to a local Chipotle restaurant with her two kids. “(There were) no signs and no one said anything,” Reise said.

According to Reise, if she would have known about the outbreak or made aware of it, she would have walked right back out of Chipotle’s door. “I have OCD, and I’m so afraid of that kind of stuff,” Reise said, nodding toward the Clorox wipes by her computer.

According to Derek Ray, Apprentice General Manager at Chipotle in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, their restaurant receives their produce from a company called Get Fresh Produce. The produce delivered comes from a radius within 350 miles to the restaurant’s location, so it is highly unlikely the produce delivered to the Oregon and Washington restaurants could be delivered anywhere beyond those two states.

The possibility of the same E. coli outbreak spreading to other Chipotle locations is low. However, the number of foodborne illnesses perpetrated by the brand is starting to become alarming. The company may have to start taking its own motto, “Food With Integrity”, more seriously.

Gun violence on campus: Are we prepared?

Dylan Buboltz and Dan Norman

Umpqua Community College. Virginia Tech. Northern Arizona University. These are a few campuses that have fallen victims of school shootings. Unfortunately, incidents like these can happen anywhere at any time. Are college students and faculty nationwide prepared for active shooter situations?

Photo courtesy: Sarah Zacharias

Sarah Zacharias, a senior psychology major at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, expressed her concern over a lack of student awareness and preparation. “If there was a school shooting I don’t think I would feel prepared because I wouldn’t know what to do exactly or where I should go.”

Officer David Jones of  UW-Green Bay Public Safety stated that there are resources available for faculty, staff, and students. Jones says the Public Safety website includes presentations with proper protocol to follow in the event of a shooting.

One of the steps Jones mentions is for faculty, students, and staff to be active, and if confronted by a shooter, to do something. Jones also advised awareness of your surroundings, and to know whether to stay put or run.

When asked if there is anything campus police can do to get the word out quicker and more efficiently, Zacharias stated, “Honestly, they would have to get creative because I feel as though if they hung a poster or sent out an e-mail to all students a lot of the times, those things get overlooked. So I think a more in your face approach is best for example, a mock simulation.”

Jones mentions that the UWGB police force offers training to student organizations on Green Bay’s campus upon request. UWGB Public Safety also offers texts alerts that students, staff, and faculty can sign up for, as well as a PA system, and an armed officer on duty 24/7. When an incident happens on campus, the text alert is sent out to those signed up.  The text system is also used to keep students up-to-date on situations when a suspicious figure is still on or near campus.

Photo courtesy: WBAY.com

The common mindset for many schools, especially smaller, isolated campuses such as UW-Green Bay, is that “this could never happen to us.” School shootings have happened at many different schools that vary wildly in location, size, and student population. The importance of a safety procedure on college campuses is vital for students and faculty to be prepared in an unexpected incident.

According to Time Magazine, there have been 23 shootings on college campuses across the United States in 2015 alone. This number comes from Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun reform group which has been tracking the number of school shootings since 2012. Among the 23 shootings this year, the Umpqua Community College in Oregon shooting has been the most tragic, leaving nine people dead. Umpqua has a smaller population than UWGB.

Unfortunately these incidents occur on an almost regular basis. Benjamin Hellman, a Michigan reserve police officer with Frankenmuth Police Department and a Saginaw Valley State University alumnus, was a student and reserve officer when an incident occurred that sent the entire campus into lockdown. An alleged gang member was said to be armed on campus. Minutes after police were notified, every student received an email notifying them of the situation. “I was prepared because of my police training involving active shooters, specifically with a SWAT team, but had I just been a regular student I wouldn’t have known the procedure for that incident,” Hellman said.

Preparedness can be essential in staying safe, and keeping those around you safe in a situation with an active shooter. More often than not though, it seems students and faculty are unprepared, and therefore are panicked and can often make poor choices in these situations. Hellman stated, “I think that in the first week of every semester they should have a campus safety officer provide a demonstration or training session for active shooter situations.” Hellman also believes professors and even high school teachers should receive training before every semester so that they are always prepared.

The importance of awareness of safety procedures in active shooter situations can mean the difference between life and death. “It is extremely important for both students and faculty to be aware of emergency procedures, if they prevent a single life from being taken that would be incredible.” Hellman said.

There have been many solutions offered by the public for situations with active shooters; one that has surfaced is allowing teachers and professors to carry concealed weapons. Hellman stated, “Teachers having weapons could be an option, but unfortunately there would be many gun control issues that would come with that, and also, many teachers, and in fact their students, would not feel comfortable with their teacher having a gun visible when they are trying to lecture a class.” Hellman’s best answer for a solution is to have a faculty and student body that is aware and prepared for an active shooter situation.

Professor Shauna Froelich, a communication professor at UWGB, believes that active shooter drills should be just as important as fire drills. “If we conduct fire alarm drills annually, we should also require annual training for students and faculty.”

As a professor, Froelich is aware of the alarming amount of campus shootings each year. When asked if she is notified after a major shooting about how to deal with such a situation she stated, “Not specifically, however, I have talked to a colleague and friend, De Pere Police Chief, Derek Beiderwieden. He has trained on the ‘Run, Hide, Fight’ rule.” Froelich also believes students and faculty should receive some training demonstration for active shooter situations. Froelich believes this short video that Beiderwieden shared with her could be effective for awareness during these situations.

Unfortunately these active shooter situations continue to happen, and most likely will continue to happen. Being aware and prepared of active shooter safety procedures is the best way students and faculty can stay safe, and keep those around them safe. If we continue to go unprepared, the tragic amount of lives lost will continue. As Hellman said, one of the best ways to prevent loss of life is to have a student body and faculty members that are prepared and ready to react in such a situation.

If more college campuses take the initiative to reinforce safety procedures, hopefully, the loss of life can decrease in these situations. Umpqua Community College has approximately 3,300 students, and Virginia Tech University has approximately 31,000 students, these situations can happen at any place, at any time. We should always be prepared for an active shooter situation.