How a crisis communications strategy protects your restaurant's customers, employees and your reputation

How a crisis communications strategy protects your customers, employees and your reputation
By Byron Yankou
October 23, 2013

What would you do if 10 media people with cameras and microphones were banging at your front door, demanding to know about reports of illness allegedly caused by food served at your establishment?

Chi Chi’s was a 100-unit strong U.S. restaurant chain that saw one of its locations receive a shipment of contaminated green onions in September 2003. Though the Chi Chi’s franchisee had thoroughly washed the green onions, and had passed all previous health department inspections, there was soon a crisis. The green onions they purchased had been shipped in ice that carried the Hepatitis A virus. Over 650 people became infected and three died. The Chi Chi’s chain – which had experienced some unrelated market challenges but was still a very viable organization – did not survive the crisis and eventually went out of business. People in the industry later analyzed Chi Chi’s communications response, which became a lesson on what not to do.

According to Public Relations Quarterly (December 1, 2005) during Chi Chi’s first public comment, “…the spokesperson was not reported as being regretful for the outbreak or compassionate for the hundreds of victims. In effect, the message failed to characterize the company as caring or willing to serve the public need, and thus lacked the essence of character.” Their financial condition and the Hepatitis A outbreak coupled with Chi Chi’s corporate responses all contributed to the chain’s failure.

Now, let’s contrast Chi Chi’s response with that of Maple Leaf Foods.

Immediate response

According to Linda Smith, president of Smithcom Communications and a crisis communications expert who has called Maple Leaf Foods a client for nearly 15 years, the company’s compassionate and ethical response during the listeriosis outbreak of August 2008 helped protect the public from further exposure to the bacteria that causes listeriosis. This was accomplished by a wide product recall of meat produced at the identified plant, as well as closure of several Maple Leaf production facilities.

Maple Leaf responded immediately. Three hours after the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed the existence of the bacteria, Maple Leaf Foods CEO Michael McCain took full responsibility for the outbreak. He communicated directly to the public through the media, showing people that public welfare was first and foremost. Communication tips At this year’s CRFA Show, Smith participated in a well-received seminar where she discussed crisis communications for foodservice operators who mistakenly serve contaminated food. Smith offers the following dos and don’ts for crisis communications: Do Be real, be humble Be visible Control the agenda Start immediately Make big decisions Accept responsibility in person, without exception Use simple quotes Have many channels Don’t Don’t presume it will go away if you don’t participate Don’t presume it won’t get worse Don’t hide Don’t underestimate impact Don’t become arrogant Don’t blame others Don’t rely on government The CFIA website states that there are about 11 million cases of food borne illness in Canada every year. The vast majority of these cases may be prevented by using safe food-handling practices known as “cook, clean, chill and separate.” But there may be food borne illnesses that will affect your operation that you cannot prevent. Make safety a priority It is important your company follow a written food risk management plan like HACCP. Make all staff aware that food safety is the ultimate priority. If your staff has followed HACCP, then there is a better chance that food served by your organization is safe. If you have served contaminated food from no fault of your own, you’ll be less liable if you can prove that you follow safe food practices. Engaging an independent communications expert may be as crucial to your establishment’s survival as seeking professional legal or tax advice. Consult with your insurance broker on how your organization may obtain coverage through the CRFA Restaurant Protect plan. CRFA’s Restaurant Protect Insurance Policy includes business interruption coverage which can help you in case of injury to a customer or loss of business due to a closure. Restaurants can opt in for additional coverage called Restaurant Recovery that includes help from crisis communications experts. That policy also covers accidental contamination, malicious tampering of food, or product extortion. Your insurance broker can give you detailed information on all the different levels of coverage available. There’s no question that with the tens of millions of restaurant meals served in Canada every year without incident, we enjoy a very safe food supply. But food service organizations must be ready to defend their reputation in the event of a food related catastrophe that is occurring almost every day in this country. Between allergic reactions and contaminated food, the wise operator will practice prevention but prepare for unavoidable situations. See also: About the author Byron Yankou is a restaurant risk management and restaurant insurance expert. You can contact him through his website www.Dinesurance.ca or follow him on Twitter @Dinesurance.

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How a crisis communications strategy protects your restaurant’s customers, employees and your reputation

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