Chipotle Mexican Grill CL B (NYSE:CMG.B)
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Chipotle Mexican Grill announced today that it will serve more than 52
million pounds of naturally raised meat in 2008, a 12 million pound or
40 percent increase over last year. That solidifies Chipotle’s
position as the world’s leading restaurant
provider of naturally raised meat – beef, pork
and chicken from naturally, humanely raised animals fed a vegetarian
diet and not given antibiotics, added hormones or growth-stimulants. The
52 million pounds translates to about 200 million meals in the coming
year.
“We are changing the way the world thinks
about and eats fast food,” said Steve Ells,
founder, chairman and CEO of Chipotle. “There
was a time when only the most demanding chefs were using this superior
quality meat at the most expensive restaurants, but now we’re
committed to making it available and affordable so everyone can eat
better.”
To do that, Chipotle spends more money on its food (as a percentage of
its sales) than any other restaurant, regardless of category. The
restaurant’s goal is to serve 100 percent
naturally raised meat in all of its nearly 700 restaurants. Currently,
all Chipotle restaurants serve naturally raised pork, while more than 80
percent serve naturally raised chicken, and about half serve naturally
raised beef. It’s all part of a vision Ells
calls Food With Integrity that began in 2000.
Often, it has been animal rights groups that have championed the
improved treatment of animals raised for food. But, Chipotle is showing
how success in the marketplace can drive positive change. Animal rights
groups and food industry insiders are taking notice.
“Chipotle has done more to positively
influence the landscape of rural America than any other company or
government program,” says Bill Niman, the
founder of Niman Ranch. “When Chipotle began
working with Niman Ranch, there were fewer than 50 family-owned pig
farms in the system. Today more than 500 family farms adhere to a
humane, natural method, and that’s because
Chipotle has provided those farmers a fair market for their pork.”
To accomplish its goal of serving all naturally raised meat, Chipotle is
constantly looking for like-minded suppliers who share the company’s
commitment to humane treatment of animals, or working with existing
suppliers to change their protocols for the better.
“We have applauded Chipotle a number of times,”
said Paul Shapiro, senior director of the Factory Farms Campaign for the
Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). “That
a company like Chipotle can have a successful business model while not
supporting the abuses in the agribusiness industry is a positive sign.
Companies ought to be rewarded for helping to reduce animal suffering.”
HSUS has worked to pass laws in Florida, Arizona and Oregon against sow
gestation crates and has pressured some restaurant chains to begin
moving away from other abusive factory farming methods, such as battery
cages for chickens. While new laws create meaningful improvements,
Chipotle provides a practical, persuasive example of a company that has
achieved superior performance while supporting humane treatment of
animals.
“A lot of people in the industry say there
shouldn’t be legislation, that the market
should decide,” said Bernard Rollin, Ph.D.,
an animal ethicist at Colorado State University who pioneered humane
treatment for lab animals in the 1980s and is now focusing on farm
animals. “Chipotle has led by doing good and
doing well at the same time, and influencing the entire food system.”
In addition to influencing the food system and creating new
opportunities for suppliers, Ells says Food With Integrity is
helping to build awareness and increase demand for sustainably raised
foods among customers.
“We are educating our customers about the
tastes and benefits of eating fresh, naturally raised foods,”
says Ells. “And the more they come to
appreciate these better foods, the more they are going to want them from
others.”
For more information about the progress of Food With Integrity,
including a state by state guide to where natural meats are offered,
suppliers used, and the company’s standards
for naturally raised meats, go to www.chipotle.com.
About Chipotle
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG)(NYSE: CMG.B) offers a focused menu of
burritos, tacos, burrito bowls (a burrito without the tortilla) and
salads made from fresh, high-quality raw ingredients, prepared using
classic cooking methods and served in a distinctive atmosphere. Through
our vision of Food With Integrity, Chipotle is seeking to change for the
better the way people eat not only from using fresh ingredients, but
ingredients that are sustainably grown and naturally raised with respect
for the animals, the land and the farmers who produce the food. Chipotle
opened its first restaurant in 1993 and currently operates more than 670
restaurants. For more information, visit www.chipotle.com.