Chipotle’s CEO has responded to claims that portion sizes are getting smaller, following a wave of criticism from disgruntled customers.
Brian Nicol denied that he had instructed staff to cut back on portions, saying the company would be making changes to ensure satisfaction.
“First of all, there has never been a directive to offer our customers less,” Niccol said during an earnings presentation on Wednesday, CNN reported.
“That said, the feedback made us take a fresh look at the execution of our entire system.”
He revealed that Chipotle will retrain its staff to ensure consistently “generous portions” are served in all of its 3,500-plus stores.
Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol denies that portion sizes are getting smaller, as he has announced he will train his staff to ensure consistency across his stores.
“We are putting renewed emphasis on training and coaching to ensure we are consistently making bowls and burritos the right way,” Niccol said.
This came after Wells Fargo analyst Zachary Fadem and his team wanted to test the theory that Chipotle was skimping on its typically large portions after a series of TikTok videos showed employees barely filling their burritos.
The team ordered and weighed 75 bowls at eight locations in New York City, keeping the variables the same by ordering the same ingredients: white rice, black beans, chicken, pico de gallo, cheese, and lettuce. according to Barons.
They were surprised to find that there were large differences between locations, with some serving dishes weighing up to 33 percent more than others.
The largest burrito bowl the team ordered weighed 700 grams, while the smallest weighed only 400 grams.
Of all 75 burrito bowls — which were distributed for Wells Fargo analysts’ lunches — the average weight was about 21.5 ounces (650 grams).
Fadem’s investigation follows months of claims from TikTokers that Chipotle employees skimped on ingredients.
Nicol was forced to respond after Wells Fargo analyst Zachary Fadem and his team wanted to test the theory that Chipotle is cutting back on its typically large portions
Zachary Fadem found huge differences in portion sizes from location to location
The investigation came after TikTokers spent months alleging that Chipotle employees were skimping on their ingredients
The trend started in early May, when Keith Lee — a former mixed martial arts fighter and TikTok food critic with more than 16 million followers on the app — posted a video of himself eating a burrito bowl that apparently didn’t contain the chicken he ordered.
“These portions are insane,” he said said in the video.
Later that month, another influencer, Isaac Francis, filmed himself ordering from Chipotle and indignantly asking for more rice and chicken.
He wrote in the video’s caption that he “could not allow” the employee to “disrespect me with that high-protein size.”
However, employees were quick to react to this ‘dehumanizing’ trend, saying that filming work caused stress.
Laurie Schalow, Chipotle’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, also told CNN that the size of the bowls may vary depending on the number of ingredients a customer chooses or whether they choose to make an ingredient ‘light’ or ‘extra light’.
However, Nicol said customers are welcome to ask for more toppings, as he wants his customers to be “excited” about the food.
The controversy, however, has not had a negative impact on Chipotle’s revenue, which rose about 18 percent in the second quarter, beating analysts’ expectations.
