E-Coli in Odwalla

In 4 hours Odwalla Management had put in calls to the FDA, the CDC, food safety experts and the company lawyers. As a result of the information and advice they received they were able to consider a variety of options, these being a total recall, a non-public recall or simply sitting and waiting. The option they chose was based on the company’s core values of honesty, integrity and respect. They accepted responsibility in every possible way and pulled all possibly contaminated products off the shelf.

The overwhelming feeling of people who dealt with the company at the time of the crisis was that here was a community of ordinary people who were devastated at the fact that they had created an episode of poisoning that ended in a loss of life. The company'

s values spoke of nourishing people - and when the crisis arose it was an adherence to honest, straight talking and accepting responsibility that helped to get the company through.

The company had a reputation for being Socially Responsible and their prompt and consistent reactions went a long way towards assuring the public the company was doing all they could in a manner consistent with what the company stood for. They had walked the talk since the formation of the company and as a result of that “walk, the company’s stakeholders were firm believers in the company itself. Stakeholders for the company immediately affected by the crisis included both primary (employees, stockholders, customers, retailers and suppliers) and secondary (general public, media, government).

The role of the government authorities played a big role in finding and the fixing the problem. Although it seems that the government was not “watching” until a problem was found. They did however act appropriately as soon as the problem was found.

At the outset of the crisis Odwalla identified two major areas for concern with their stakeholders; Communication (both internal and external) and of course the Contamination itself. The strategy they developed in handling these two areas reflected their core values. They accepted conspicuous responsibility by offering to pay medical costs. They set up continuous communication channe

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