The chicken chain’s new tech monitors outbreaks via social media in an effort to be proactive, protect market capital.

Well-known chicken franchise Chick-fil-A is turning to technology to head off foodborne illness outbreaks, according to an article on QSR. “In a proactive move, the chain is deploying an artificial intelligence program to monitor social media to spot signs of an outbreak,” the article said.

“Per VentureBeat, Davis Addy, Chick-fil-A’s senior principal IT leader of food safety and product quality, outlined May 23 how the company plans to use the technology during a presentation at the ReWork Deep Learning Summit in Boston,” the article said. Addy spoke to technology’s ability to provide insight and “eventually foresight so we can be more proactive in helping our restaurants better identify and address food safety risks,” according to the article.

The article cited the CDC statistics regarding foodborne illnesses, which translate to “19­–21 million illnesses and between 570–800 deaths, according to the CDC,” and also indicated that “it has been determined that 64 percent of outbreaks are attributed to restaurants and 70 percent of those outbreaks are caused by infected workers.”

According to the article, “By tracking the spread of an outbreak in real time, Chick-fil-A will have a better chance of finding the source quickly, whether it be an employee or an issue further down the supply chain.”

To read the full article, click here.