Chipotle Is 100% GMO Free And This Is Why

It comes as no surprise that Chipotle is one of the healthiest fast foods out there as far as big chains go. However, they just took it to an entirely new level by announcing that they are officially GMO free, a huge step for the American fast food industry. Since fast food and healthy don’t have to be mutually exclusive (hello, sandwiches?), Chipotle is showing the world what fast food could and should look like.

In case you’re not familiar, GMO stands for genetically modified organisms and encompasses foods that have been scientifically altered in some way for some reason. In some cases it’s so herbicides are naturally part of the plant’s DNA so no fertilizing is necessary or, in simpler instances, just so plants grow easier or better or bigger. Although cross-breeding has been a part of agriculture for hundreds of years, GMOs have a lot of people questioning the safety and process of the whole thing since the foods are so heavily artificially manipulated. There isn’t much scientific evidence for either side of the argument as to whether or not GMOs are harmful to humans or the environment but Chipotle tried to air on the side of caution and really, do its customers a solid.

According to the company, it didn’t wipe out the couple of few remaining GMOs it had for only its own ethical reasons but to also ease the worries of some of its patrons. What this entails is the company is now growing its own non-GMO corn and has replaced soybean oil with sunflower oil for its chips and taco shells.

Although the tortillas may still be a work in progress (they contain some preservatives), Chipotle means business when it says it takes its food quality seriously. GMOs aside, Chipotle is paving the way for other restaurant chains by using produce that’s farm grown and not factory made and meat from pasture-raised animals that are not only free to roam but also of antibiotics and artificial hormones. Chipotle also gets a lot of praise for the fact that it uses local farms as much as possible for a more sustainable and economical approach. Even though this all comes at a cost—the company is not shy about that fact—they say they happily do it. Better yet, people happily eat it.

With the news this week that McDonalds is closing large amounts of locations all over the country due to declining sales, Chipotle’s raising awareness could be a sign for more healthful fast food in the near future.