Where’s the Beef? Chipotle Says Australia

Writing in the Huffington Post last month, Chipotle CEO Steve Ells claimed his company is having trouble finding enough “responsibly raised” (without antibiotics and hormones) beef in the United States. According to Breitbart.com, Chipotle now imports beef from Australia. There, said Ells, “cattle spend their entire lives grazing on pastures or rangelands, eating only grass or forages.”

In a letter to Ells last week, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples wrote that the company’s decision to import beef was “premature” and inconsistent with the environmental stance Ells and Chipotle have taken. He wrote that, unlike Australian beef, Texas products would not “leave a substantial carbon footprint before ending up in a Chipotle burrito.” Staples added he was dismayed by Ells’ implication that Australian meat is more “responsibly raised” than meat produced by Texas ranchers.

A Chipotle spokesman responded by saying that drought conditions have resulted in herds not being available in sufficient quantities to meet the company’s needs.

Good link for more information: http://factsaboutbeef.com/author/factsaboutbeef/