He's a laid-back guy who prides himself on his company's reputation for fun and freshness. No wonder Greg Steltenpohl calls last year's juice crisis "my worst nightmare."
As co-founder and chairman of Odwalla Inc., Steltenpohl, '76, had gotten used to a steady stream of good publicity about the juice maker revered by customers for being eco-friendly, health conscious and socially responsible. Then public health officials in several Western states linked the company's upscale apple juices to outbreaks of E. coli bacteria that eventually poisoned more than 50 people, most of them children. One Colorado toddler died.
"I'd call it a formative experience," says Steltenpohl, who stood in the eye of a national media storm. PR experts praised the Half Moon Bay, Calif., company for moving quickly to recall its product and reassure its loyal customers. Steltenpohl says he and his colleagues relied on their basic values to guide them. "When we looked at the situation, we asked, 'How would we want to be communicated with if these were our kids?' "
The uproar over the contamination led Odwalla execs to pioneer the use of "flash pasteurization" to destroy bacteria without, they say, compromising flavor. Sales have rebounded as the company works to live up to its slogan, "Drink It And Thrive."
