News

Illinois Subway stores struggle to regain trust after salmonella outbreak

July 5, 2010

The nearly 50 Subway stores in central and northern Illinois that were part of an outbreak of a rare strain of salmonella are struggling to win customers back, according to The State Journal-Register.

The investigation by the Illinois Department of Public Health continues, including testing employees to ensure they are not carrying the bacteria, which they could pass onto customers. At least one victim has filed a lawsuit against Subway, and more than 100 people have tested positive for the rare strain.

Subway has cooperated with the investigation, including replacing all fresh produce at the affected locations and apologizing for the outbreak. But the public is not convinced the food is safe, and sales are suffering.

From the story:

[Subway franchisee DeWayne] Collins said corporate officials from the Connecticut-based chain have told local owners that revenues are down between 30 percent to 50 percent in Peoria, Champaign-Urbana and other areas where media coverage of the outbreak has been extensive.

Ensuring customers that the chain's food is safe is an important step in crisis management during a foodborne illness outbreak, said Pamela Ritz, president of Specialty Risk Management in a webinar on dealing with such crises.

In the webinar "Restaurant Crisis Management: How to Protect Yourself during a Foodborne Illness Incident," Ritz explains that such a crisis can negatively impact revenue until customer trust is restored.

Protecting a store or brand from a foodborne illness requires safe food handling procedures as well as the proper insurance coverage, which goes beyond commercial property and worker's comp insurance, she said. Business interruption coverage and extra expense coverage policies can provide immediate access to a team of crisis management professionals and help provide compensation for related expenses and lost profit.

Click here for a replay of the webinar.