Chipotle CEO addresses burrito bowl portion sizes after backlash
Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol announced this week that the company is ensuring portion sizes are generous and consistent across all stores after customers aired frustrations on social media accusing the fast-casual chain of using fewer ingredients in its popular burrito bowls.
"There was never a directive to provide less to our customers," Niccol told analysts Wednesday on the company's earnings call.
The chief executive added that generous portions has always been a core brand equity of the fast-casual restaurant chain.
Moving forward, the company plans to ensure that generous portions are "more consistent" across all of its 3,500 restaurants, according to Niccol.
"We are reemphasizing training and coaching around ensuring we are consistently making bowls and burritos correctly," Niccol said.
Many TikTok users started posting videos of workers making their Chipotle bowl while repeatedly asking for more toppings. Meanwhile, Chipotle Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Laurie Schalow insisted that there had been no changes to its portion sizes.
In July, after the company began facing criticism online, Wells Fargo analyst Zachary Fedam started recording data from different Chipotle orders.
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Finance professionals, led by Fedam, ordered and weighed 75 like-for-like burrito bowls across eight locations in New York City, according to the data report. They also tested the difference between online and in-store orders.
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Based on the research recorded, the smallest bowl ordered weighed 13.8 oz. and the largest weighed in at 26.8 oz.
"That said, consistency varied widely, w/ some locations serving bowls that weigh ~33% more than other locations (on equivalent orders); and the heaviest digital/in-store bowls weighing 87%/47% more vs the lightest," the report stated.
FOX Business' Sydney Borchers contributed to this report.