Conscientious foodies looking for a quick, sustainable bite now have more
options than ever — last month, Just Salad began carbon-labeling its menu
items,
to allow diners to make more discerning choices; and since earlier this month,
more than half of Panera’s menu
now sports WRI’s “Cool Food Meals”
badge,
which identifies dishes with a lower carbon footprint.
This week, Chipotle Mexican Grill joined the movement
with the launch of its Real Foodprint — a
sustainability impact tracker that compares average values for each of
Chipotle’s 53 real ingredients to their conventional counterparts, against five key metrics:
-
Less carbon in the atmosphere (measured in grams)
-
Gallons of water saved
-
Preserving rice for generations to come through regenerative water-use practices
Hear how Mars and its Ben's Original brand are working with Delta Harvest to greatly reduce water use in rice cultivation while improving crop yields, at the SB Regenerative Ag Summit — Thursday, Oct. 17, at SB'24 San Diego.
Improved soil health (measured in sq feet)
-
Organic land supported (measured in sq feet)
-
Antibiotics avoided (measured in milligrams)
By providing detailed impact data about its ingredients for guests, the brand is
holding itself accountable for furthering its mission to "cultivate a better
world."
“Beyond asking people to make the right choice for the climate based on a carbon
label, we are demonstrating the impact of our sourcing practices through data
computed based on the ingredients in our guests’ orders,” said Caitlin
Leibert, Head of Sustainability at Chipotle. “While our guests can make good
choices for the planet by simply eating at Chipotle, the radical transparency
provided by Real Foodprint also holds us accountable to improve our practices
and source more sustainably over time. It is the combination of transparency for
our guests and Chipotle’s commitment to higher standards that make Real
Foodprint so impactful.”
Hear Bill Nye the Science
Guy
explain a little further:
Chipotle has teamed up with Nye to demonstrate how Real Foodprint works. In his
latest TikTok
video,
the Science Guy explores the environmental savings data computed for his
favorite Chipotle order — a burrito bowl with white rice, black beans, chicken,
roasted chili-corn salsa, and Queso Blanco. Bill Nye’s burrito bowl is now
available in the Chipotle app and Chipotle.com for a limited time.
Metrics for Real Foodprint are provided by HowGood — a
mission-driven, independent research company with the world’s largest
sustainability database for products and ingredients. HowGood aggregates
information from Chipotle’s suppliers and over 450 unique data sources —
including peer-reviewed scientific literature, industry findings, and research
from government and non-governmental organizations — to evaluate the average
impact of Chipotle’s 53 real ingredients on the environment and animal welfare.
Chipotle is the first restaurant brand to partner with HowGood.
“Having worked with top global brands across the industry, we are particularly
excited about Chipotle’s approach to providing a truly comprehensive view of
ingredient impact,” said HowGood CEO Alexander Gillett. “We're optimistic
that their trailblazing could set a new tone for radical transparency, and
excited to have partnered with them to provide the level of granular, exhaustive
data they are committed to using.”
While Real Foodprint information is only available now for diners ordering digitally, Chipotle says more updates to the Real Foodprint platform will be made through the end of 2020.
Learn more about Chipotle’s Real Foodprint and the metrics involved
here.
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Oct 29, 2020 2pm EDT / 11am PDT / 6pm GMT / 7pm CET