Chipotle Pulls Popular Burrito Ingredient Off of the Menu

Written by Caitlyn Fitzpatrick (Patch Staff)

Hundreds of Chipotle restaurants will stop serving a menu option beginning Jan. 14.

Don’t worry guacamole lovers.

One-third of locations, about 600, will not be serving pork for the time being because the supplier is not living up to the Mexican grill’s expectations, ABC News reports.

Chipotle promotes “food with integrity” on its website and says that 100 percent of the pigs used for carnitas are never given antibiotics and are fed a vegetarian diet. However, some part of the standards have not been met, which caused the pork elimination.

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“We found a pork supplier that was not meeting our standards, so we have suspended our purchases from this supplier,” Chipotle Mexican Grill Spokesman Chris Arnold told CNNMoney in an email. “We cannot get enough pork that meets our responsibly raised standard for all our restaurants, and we will not be able to serve carnitas in some locations.”

Specific restaurants affected by the pork-free decision have not been revealed, however, “no carnitas” signs have already been displayed in places like New York. It is unclear how long pork that did not meet the guidelines was being served to customers.

The first Chipotle opened in 1993 in an old ice cream shop in Denver.

Photo Credit: Chipotle Mexican Grill Facebook