Panera Bread Announces Its Goal to Become Climate Positive By 2050

Today, Panera Bread announces its commitment to become climate positive – removing more carbon from the atmosphere than it emits – by 2050. The first national fast casual restaurant company to set a climate positive target, Panera today updated its Food Beliefs to include climate goals, establishing an ambitious vision for its business. With approximately 25 percent of global greenhouse gases created from food production¹, Panera hopes to lead and inspire its industry to address the climate crisis.

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More than half of Panera entrees are Cool Food Meals including guest favorites like the Chipotle Chicken Avocado Melt. Panera was the first national restaurant company to label Cool Food Meals on its menu—those meals that have a low impact on the climate, making them a delicious way to help the planet. (Photo: Business Wire)

“Climate change is one of the greatest humanitarian crises of our time, and we must act now for our planet. We embrace the responsibility to take immediate and relentless action to create positive change and hope that our industry will follow us. We are sharing our vision for a climate positive future to inspire both our industry and our supply chain partners to take urgent, decisive and clear action,” said Niren Chaudhary, CEO, Panera Bread.

Reaching this climate positive goal equates to removing approximately 2.4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents each year as compared to Panera’s 2019 greenhouse gas baseline. This is equal to the amount of carbon sequestered by 2.96 million acres of forest per year, an area 14 times the size of New York City. Since 2017, Panera has already reduced emissions from its operations by 15% per square foot, meeting its 2022 target one year early.

Given the seriousness of the climate crisis and the effects experienced across the globe already, we believe it is Panera’s responsibility to take immediate action to reduce our impact. Therefore, Panera is pursuing the following 2025 short term targets to reduce its footprint:

• Increasing the percentage of Cool Food Meals to 60% of bakery-cafe entrees.
• Transitioning to 100% circular - reusable, recyclable and compostable - packaging.
• Using green, renewable electricity for at least 50% of Panera Bread owned operations.

It is estimated that between both the climate commitments of G20 countries and those of individual companies worldwide, the rate of decarbonization falls well below what is needed to keep warming to 1.5°C². For Panera, we recognize this not only creates a need for immediate action but also to commit to reach beyond net zero, to climate positive. Therefore, Panera is developing a long-term roadmap to reduce its emissions in line with a 1.5°C science-based target, committing to first significantly reduce its carbon footprint and then use credible carbon removal and sequestration projects to reach its goal of becoming climate positive.

“Panera has a long history of making tough, conscious choices about the food system, from serving chicken raised without antibiotics beginning in 2004 to being first to label calories on the menu,” said Sara Burnett, VP Food Beliefs & Sustainability. “With the launch of Cool Food Meals in 2020, Panera recognized the impact of your plate is much bigger than a calorie count; it also has an impact on the planet. As a continuation of our journey, we are committing to our ambitious goal and to work with others in our industry to make this vision for a climate positive future a reality.”

These actions build on Panera’s ongoing efforts to help guests eat with the planet in mind. One year ago, in collaboration with World Resources Institute (WRI), Panera was the first national restaurant company to label Cool Food Meals on its menu—those meals that have a low impact on the climate, making them a delicious way to help the planet. More than half of Panera entrees are Cool Food Meals including guest favorites like the Chipotle Chicken Avocado Melt, Autumn Squash Soup, Fuji Apple Chicken Salad and even Broccoli Cheddar Soup. If, each year, every person in the U.S. swapped 10 quarter-pound burgers with fries for 10 Chipotle Chicken Avocado Melt sandwiches with chips for, given the climate impacts of those items, it would reduce carbon emissions by 77 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. This change equates to taking more than 16 million passenger vehicles off the road for one year.

To learn more about Panera’s Food Beliefs, visit PaneraBread.com/FoodBeliefs. For a full list of Panera Cool Food menu items, visit PaneraBread.com/CoolFoodMeals, or order a Cool Food Meal now at www.panerabread.com. To learn more about the science behind the Cool Food Meal label, visit CoolFood.org/consumer.

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About Panera Bread

Thirty years ago, at a time when quick service meant low quality, Panera set out to challenge this expectation. We believed that food that was good and that you could feel good about, served in a warm and welcoming environment by people who cared, could bring out the best in all of us. To us, that is food as it should be and that is why we exist.

So, we began with a simple commitment: to bake bread fresh every day in our bakery-cafes. No short cuts, just bakers with simple ingredients and hot ovens. Each night, any unsold bread and baked goods were shared with neighbors in need.

These traditions carry on today, as we have continued to find ways to be an ally for wellness to our guests. That means crafting a menu of soups, salads, and sandwiches that we are proud to feed our families. Like poultry and pork raised without antibiotics on our salads and sandwiches. A commitment to transparency and options that empower our guests to eat the way they want. Seasonal flavors and whole grains. And a commitment to avoid artificial additives (preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, and colors from artificial sources on our No No list) in the food in our U.S. bakery-cafes. Why? Because we think that simpler is better and we believe in serving food as it should be. Because when you don’t have to compromise to eat well, all that is left is the joy of eating.

We’re also focused on improving quality and convenience. With investments in technology and operations, we now offer new ways to enjoy your Panera favorites – like mobile ordering and Rapid Pick-Up® for to-go orders and delivery – all designed to make things easier for our guests.

As of Sept. 28, 2021, there were 2,120 bakery-cafes in 48 states, Washington, DC, and Ontario, Canada, operating under the Panera Bread® or Saint Louis Bread Co.® names. Panera Bread is part of Panera Brands, one of the world’s largest fast casual restaurant companies, comprised of Panera Bread®, Caribou Coffee® and Einstein Bros.® Bagels. For more information, visit panerabread.com or find us on Twitter (@panerabread), Facebook (facebook.com/panerabread) or Instagram (@panerabread).

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