Chipotle causes beef with Texas agriculture leaders

A restaurant heading to Amarillo soon is serving up some controversy. Chipotle announced they are looking outside the United State for beef, which has Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples concerned. Chipotle claims there are not enough U.S. cattle producers who meet their naturally raised standards, so they will soon import grass-fed beef from Australia. This has Commissioner Staples urging the company to reconsider their options and to look to Texas, the beef capital of the world, for their beef needs. He asked Chipotle's CEO to meet with him and other beef industry leaders to discuss a reasonable and local solution. “Texas is home to the largest cattle herd in the nation, and our ranchers are always looking for new opportunities," said Staples in a statement on Monday. "Unfortunately, Chipotle says they want to import ‘responsibly raised’ beef by shipping it more than 8,000 miles from Australia, and in turn, increase their carbon emissions and costs. If the Chipotle CEO truly wants to be responsible, he should get together with me and Texas beef industry leaders so we can have a real discussion about ‘meating’ their needs. I encourage Chipotle diners to push Mr. Ells to work with us so they can enjoy fresh, healthy American beef." Chipotle's decision also raised concerns with the Texas Cattle Feeders Association. "We are disappointed that Chipotle suggests that they can't find an adequate supply of responsibly raised beef within the United States because the United States is the world's leader when it comes to responsibly raising high-quality, safe beef," said Kayla Lanford...more